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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/24071779">The Cooking Show (Hetalia x reader)</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/its_hetalia_wenches/pseuds/its_hetalia_wenches'>its_hetalia_wenches</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Hetalia: Axis Powers</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Chefs, America being America (Hetalia), Cooking, F/F, France Being France (Hetalia), Hetalia Countries Using Human Names, Human &amp; Country Names Used (Hetalia)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>In-Progress</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-05-08</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-05-08</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-02 20:07:12</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>General Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>10</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>22,254</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/24071779</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/its_hetalia_wenches/pseuds/its_hetalia_wenches</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>(Hetalia Cooking Show!AU)<br/>You, an aspiring chef, is selected to an internationally famous Competitive Cooking Television Program that you've been obsessing over since you were a kid and your goal is to win. This is one of your chances to fulfill your dreams of becoming a world famous chef and starting your own restaurant and maybe a chance to find your significant other? You'll meet a lot of unique people on your journey to success. The possibilities are endless! Welcome to Top Master Chef: Season 6!</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>America/England (Hetalia), Denmark/Norway (Hetalia), England (Hetalia)/Reader, Germany (Hetalia)/Reader, Hong Kong/Iceland (Hetalia), Prussia (Hetalia)/Reader, Spain (Hetalia)/Reader</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>19</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>1. The mail</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>The warm sunlight hit your face through your partly open curtains. You slowly opened your eyes groaning and trying to cover your face with your hands.  The sound of your annoying alarm didn't help either. You would have thrown a tantrum right now but it doesn't work like that in your twenty something year old life.</p><p>You were doing fine for a 21 year old. You were persuing your dream of becoming a chef as you were currently fresh out of culinary school. Your possibilities are infinite or so you thought. Were you going to start working in a 5 star restaurant? Were you going to start your own restaurant? Were you going to be a food critic? Or maybe start your own cooking show? A travel cooking show? Write a cook book? Well, you can't achieve that by sitting around on your ass.</p><p>Currently you were working two part-time jobs on two small restaurants down the street, it payed you good enough to pay the bills, even though your parents refused it and told you to save it for yourself. You wanted to afford your own place but due to your parents' mild case of 'helicopter parenting' they wanted you to live with them until you got on your feet. You were grateful for them and thought that you might as well do a part for them. </p><p>You were currently staring at the ceiling contemplating on waking up and going on with your life when you took out your phone and realized it's Sunday. You would have probably slept in but you have set your alarm out of habit. Well that made your morning better. A whole day of relaxing and TV shows to catch up. You got out of bed and made your way to your small study table. You opened your laptop and did your routine check on your social media and emails. You checked your mail inbox and one email titled  'Congraulations Y/N, you have been selected' caught your eyes. You pressed it out of curiosity. Wait, was it, 'that'? No it can't be! It wasn't possible! You excitedly pressed the mail and it opened up.</p><p>'Dear Y/N L/N, </p><p>If you have received this mail, Congratulations! You have been selected as a participant in the Top Master Chef (Season 6): 365 day challenge television program. We were very impressed with the footage  submitted by you. You will be competing under the category of professional chefs as you requested. Our theme this year is 'We are stronger together' so we will be having a diverse number of participants this year. This is our longest television casting yet and there will be a lot of twists and turns in your journey. The main location of the event is New York, USA but we will be switching to destinations by each month as the show will be casted all year round. If you are already a US citizen please arrive at the venue mentioned in the attachment. If you are not and is in need of flight bookings please contact the numbers and email addresses mentioned in the attachment. Further information will be mailed to you after we get a response. We look forward to meeting you Miss. Y/N L/N. Have a safe journey.</p><p>Sincerely,<br/>
Top Master Chef program,<br/>
Judge Bonnefoy.'</p><p>You squealed in excitement. You pinched yourself to see if it was a dream. No this was real! You got selected to a internationally popular TV show! And a cooking show at that! You were excited was an understatement.</p><p>Yes, you did put in an application but who thought you would actually get selected. You were a fan of the show since you were a kid and now you are going to participate in it! This was too much for you to take in. You paused for a minute took a deep breath and rubbed your eyes to see if this was real. You took one look at the email again, and couldn't contain yourself. You ran downstairs squealing.</p><p>_________</p><p>"MOM! DAD! GUESS WHAT?" you yelled as you ran down the stairs.</p><p>"Good morning, (Y/N). What's with the cheery mood?" your mom asked as she looked at you strangely seeing that you looked like you were about to burst.</p><p>"Take a guess!" you said trying to contain your squealing.</p><p>"Ugh just tell us already, nobody is going to guess right" (s/n) said as they rolled their eyes.</p><p>"I GOT INTO TOP MASTER CHEF!" you yelled out as you started to squeal.</p><p>Your mom caught on and started to squeal as well. "Are you serious? Oh my God, that sounds so great honey, I'm so happy for you!" your mom said as she came in and hugged you as your dad cheered you on equally excited.</p><p>"I heard the show give out a lot of prize money! You gotta win this sweetie." Your dad pipped in as he put a hand on your shoulder.</p><p>"Forget about the prize money! Our little girl is going to be on TV! I'm going to let everyone know about this" your mom said as she hugged you. Your mom was probably going to call all your relatives now.</p><p>"Wait. You seriously got in to that TV show? Like for real? I mean out of all the people, you?" your (s/n) asked. All you could do right now was nod your head excitedly and ignore the insult that was just thrown at you. You were that excited. You didn't care about anything else. </p><p>"So honey tell us more, where is it going to be?" your mom asked curiously.</p><p>You went on about all the information, from venue to date and on and on. This was one of the happiest days of your life. You were quite nervous and excited at the same time, but this is your dream so you are not going to give up. You trained your skills for this your whole life.You are going to win and that's final. Maybe you should catch up on some episodes of Top Master Chef, to get some inspiration and feed your excitement and maybe call (b/f/n), friends and your colleagues and tell them about this.</p><p>You could just imagine meeting Chef Bonnefoy, Chef Wang and Chef Adnan in the flesh and not to forget the charismatic host Mr.Belischmidt. They were the new cast of hosts and judges since Season 4 and have gained popularity through their charming ways. Some would say the reason for the whole show being afloat is due to them. Aside their cool facade they were actually very tough with their judgement and the host was known for making sarcastic comments when something was not going right for a participant. It actually terrified you for a minute. What if it was you? Will you be made fun of on TV? No one knows what the future holds. You'll have to be ready for whatever the future throws at you.<br/>
______________________________________</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0002"><h2>2. Backstage</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>You looked up at the studio building ahead of you. It was 8 in the morning and you wished you would have gotten up much more earlier. It wasn't your fault you over slept. The bed in your hotel was way too comfortable with it's fluffy sheets and everything.</p><p>After a month of waiting you were finally here! Your were nervous but you were wearing your lucky hair tie your mom gave you, so it brought you a bit of comfort. Chills ran down your spine and goosebumps began to form on your skin as you entered the building. Your heart raced at the sight of it. It was a vast and a very sophisticated looking area with a waiting room with several seats and couches which was now full. The receiption desk was surrounded by a very a long queue. It must be the participants for the cooking show. </p><p>You should probably go to the bathroom and fix out your outfit which was a white long sleeve button up, tucked under a knee length pencil skirt, and look more presentable, but first you have to register at the reception as your handbook thingy suggested. </p><p>You went and joined the queue with your ID and confirmation letter in hand. After taking a good look at the queue you realized you are going to have to stay for in it for a long time. Maybe you should strike up a conversation? You were going to compete with these people but that didn't mean you couldn't make friends. Social interaction wasn't your forte but you might as well try to improve it starting with the stranger infront of you.</p><p>You looked at the guy infront who had his back against you. Your logic though it was good idea to poke the shoulder of this certain stranger. The stranger turned around looking confused. He had sparkling green eyes, tan skin and brown hair. He was really tall, like really tall and was no doubt, really handsome.</p><p>You started to speak as you held up your hand for him to shake it"Um Hello, I'm (Y/N), I'm here for the show Top Master Chef, I just wanted to know your-"</p><p>"Hola Chica! I'm Antonio, I'm glad someone here is humble enough to talk with people" he said the last part loud enough to everyone to hear as a huge smile made it's way to his face. He took your hand a shook it vigorously. You realized he had a  Spanish accent. "Gracias, chica, and yes, I'm a participant in the competition, I'm guessing you are too? Are you in the professional chefs' category?" he asked letting go of your hand.</p><p>"Oh yes, I'm in the professional chef category, but isn't it unusual that they have two categories this time? I mean I've been a fan of this show since I was a kid and this is the first time I've seen anything like this" you answered.</p><p>"Si, chica, didn't you hear the rumors going around that they are doing some changes to the program to get more views. I really hope the changes will be beneficial for us." he said with his chin in his hand. </p><p>"Anyways chica where are you from? I'm from España!" Antonio answered cheerfully.</p><p>"Oh me, I'm from (C/N). So you are Antonio.....?" you said as you waited for his answer.</p><p>"Fernandez Carriedo. You can call me Toni! What about you Chica?"</p><p>"(M/N) (L/N)"</p><p>"That's a cute name for a cute chica." he said as he sent a wink your way. </p><p>Well there goes your cheeks. Of course you were blushing. Who wouldn't when a hot Spanish guy calls you cute. Focus (Y/N) you are not here to be flustered. Brush if off with a question.</p><p>"Thanks. Are you here with anyone?" <br/>Well, that was dumb question. Thank you brain.</p><p>"Nope, not me. Before you were here, I started to strike up a conversation with this Italian guy. He must have been in a bad mood cause he told me to shut up and moved far away from me. Since then I didn't have the courage to talk with anyone here" he said as he looked down a bit disappointed for a second. Then that adorable smile made it's way to his face again. </p><p>"Thank you for talking with me chica, this whole show biz thing makes me nervous and I talk alot when I'm nervous"</p><p>That made you feel warm inside. You really wish that you would get teamed up with Antonio for group challenges. He a professional Spanish chef so, what could go wrong.</p><p>"Oh no problem, I'm glad I could talk to you. Just don't mind if people are mean to you Toni, they must have their reasons. I mean everyone is stressed out at this point." you said as you gazed ahead at the long queue.</p><p>"Exactamente, chica." Toni said and a comfortable silence followed you for a while. </p><p>You drown yourself in the noises of the crowd and realized you were surrounded by noises of different languages and accents. You heard a British accent, a German accent, some one speaking Italian very loudly. It was a whole new experience hearing all these diverse noises. Some were talking on their phones and a minority of them were talking to each other. They were right when they said this season is going to be diverse. These people must be from countries all over the world. This was going to be a lot harder than you expected.<br/>____________________</p><p>After the registration, all of the participants were told to stay in the waiting room until they were allowed backstage. You excused yourself to the washroom and fixed yourself up.</p><p>You realized the people in the reception reduced after everyone was registered. Must be due to the some  family members of participants leaving. </p><p>That reminded you to call your mom and dad and tell them that everything went smoothly. They were very excited for this and your (s/n), even though they gave you an attitude once in a while, you know they missed you too. You took a phone call to your parents and told them everything. </p><p>After the phone call you continued to chat with Toni about family, profession, hobbies, pets and what-not. Toni told you he had a pet Turtle and how he'd be devastated if the secret ingredient challenge had turtle meat as an ingredient, cause it did in an episode in season 5 it seems. The horror in his face when he said 'turtle meat' was almost hilarious. Let's hope for Toni's sake that wouldn't happen.</p><p>After another hour in the waiting room, one of the television crew member came in and told everyone to follow him. You and Toni walked side by side. You did a head count while you followed the crowd. You counted 17 people. You have to compete with 17 professional chefs to win this. You begged the universe to be on your side today. <br/>______________</p><p>Once you were all backstage.<br/>The director came up and gave you all a warm smile and started his introduction.</p><p>"Hello everyone, I'm the director Jamie Smithson. Just call me Jamie. I'm really glad to have you all here. I hope you had comfortable journey and I hope your accommodation is to your liking. As your confirmation letter mentioned you'll be traveling alot. So don't get too comfortable. Heck you'll have to move tommorow if possible. This is going to be one of the biggest and unique telecasted events in the history of telecasting so we really appreciate your support to make this program a success. Now I want all of you to divide into your selected category which is professional and home cooks." </p><p>Every started to shuffle around as two equal groups were to form. You met eyes with a certain glasses wearing blue-eyed blond whom you guessed was in the amateur chef group. He gave you a shiny smile which you returned. You were relieved at this point. Now you only had 8 chefs to compete with. You sighed in relief. Maybe the universe was on your side today. </p><p>" Great! Now chefs, this is Damien" the director said pointing to a crew member,who akwardly waved at the group.</p><p>"Please follow him to your stage kitchen. He will set you up with the mics. I hope all of you are ready to go out in the spotlight. Best of the luck to you"</p><p>Okay now you were terrified. Like, right now? You all just came in here! Can't they spare a few minutes. Everyone in your group looked confused as you. You were internally panicking. You could have at least got more time to introduce your group members. You took a quick look at the people in your group. You noticed a few people like cheery Italian with happy eyes, a platinum blonde guy with a dead expression, brown haired guy with a chill face and a cute short haired brunette. That was all your foggy mind could process right now.</p><p>There was no choice,everyone had to go. At least Toni was there to give you a comforting smile which you  returned without hesitation. </p><p>As you took your steps to the stage, everything around you began to slow down. Well here goes nothing. <br/>_____________________________________</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>I really hope you enjoy this. I had so much fun writing this.</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0003"><h2>3. Spotlight</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>The spotlights hit your eyes as you and your group walked on stage. There were several cameras and lights pointed here and there.You fought back your tendency to squint your eye as it would have been unflattering. </p><p>You were now lined up along with the other contestants ready to be introduced. You wished you could have squealed at the sight you were seeing. This was something you thought was impossible. Look at you now! You couldn't believe you were now part of your favorite show. You took a quick look around the competing area. It almost made your stomach do flips. You were going to be one of the competitors running around in those stations battling for victory! You used to idolize the participants who competed in this exact place. They were the individuals who inspired you to follow your dream.</p><p>There were 9 stations. Each station was a kitchenette like area with numerous untensils. There was vast storage area with varities of common and exotic ingredients and a cabinet in the same area filled with dry ingredients and full refrigerators. This was wonderland. It almost made you forget this was a competition. It was nice to forget you were actually under a lot of pressure in reality.</p><p>Everyone looked ahead and saw that there were audience of 50-60 people infront of them. The crowd began to applaud signaling the arrival of the host. This was the moment you were eagerly waiting for. </p><p>The crowd cheered on as their favorite host walked on to stage probably from another backstage area. The host, Mr Belischmidt, gave a wave and contagious smile to everyone</p><p>"Hello everyone! It's me, Gilbert Belischmidt,ze awesome host of zhe awesome shov Top Master Chef! Ve are back again vith a awesome season and our longest broadcasting yet! Ve have 9 awesome contestants with us! Ze million dollar question is vho's  going make it to ze end! Now velcome your judges Chef Bonnefoy, Chef Adnan, and Chef Vang"</p><p>The three judges walked out of the same area Mr. Belischmidt walked out of. Chef Bonnefoy walked in waving and sending a quick wink at his adoring fans, which mostly included o women. He was handsome alright probably a model level handsome at that. Personality wise he seems like a total player. Apart from that he was great French chef who began as child prodigy. </p><p>Next up was Chef Adnan, he was one the reasons that this show got a more exotic background. He was loved by many fans world wide for his exotic dishes. He has studied culinary arts in depth and was one of toughest judges out there. Personality wise, he was a really friendly and humorous person but when he looses his cool he could make anyone piss their pants.</p><p>Last but not least was Chef Wang. Now he was the real deal. He was the owner of several Chinese restaurants all over the world. His speciality was that he never received culinary education. All his cookery skills solely came from his family and his experience of working in the family bussiness. He is now a pioneer in Asian cuisine. Personality wise, he was quite strict but he eventually warms up to his favorite contestants, but still keeps up his no bullshit attitude.</p><p>You knew everything about the judges and the sight of them made you want to fangirl. The thought of them judging your meal made you jump up in joy and crawl into hole and hide at the same time. </p><p>The three chefs and the host stood facing your group. Chef Bonnefoy looked your way and gave you a quick wink. Great now you are going to turn into a tomato again. Control yourself (Y/N), stop getting flustered over winks. </p><p>Chef Bonnefoy began to speak as he looked directly at the contestants? camera? You didn't know at this point.</p><p>"Hello my darlings, I'm Chef Francis Bonnefoy. I 'ope you 're excited to be here, Chef Wang?" He questioned with a smile on his face.</p><p>Chef Wang smirked like there was something going on oblivious to everyone "Yes, I think you all went through the rules, but this time we have a surprise for you aru. This season has a twist that you all going to love, am I right Chef Adnan?"</p><p>Chef Adnan had a similar smirk as he answered "Of course, contestants, do remember when you were divided into professional and non-professional chefs?"</p><p>Everyone silently nodded while looking at each other confused.</p><p>"Bring the other contestants out!" Chef Adnan said rather loudly. Not long after the other contestants were brought on to stage. Were they supposed to compete with you? Isn't that going to be unfair for them? </p><p>Chef Bonnefoy continued "Now my darlings you all must be very confused right now. First I w'nt you all to recall the theme of our program"</p><p>"'We are stronger together'?" a contestant in your group who you assumed was Japanese, answered.</p><p>"Exactly, now what do you all think the twist is going to be?"</p><p>You brain already made a millions of assumptions in milliseconds. This didn't sound good. All you were ready for was a solo participation and some team work here and there. What kind of game were these TV program directors trying to play?</p><p>"Now zhat both our groups are here let's start teaming you all up!" Mr. Belischmidt said as he looked at the card in his had. A team up? Is this even the same show you signed up for? They weren't kidding when they said they were doing changes to the show. What about solo participation? Everyone looked around confused and started to murmur among each other. Some contestants looked like they were about to pop a vein.</p><p>Mr. Belischmidt smirked as he started to explain.</p><p>"Be patient everybody, let ze awesome me explain. There are 9 professional chefs and 9 home cooks. You all are going to have to put your differences aside and work vith each other. Zhe prize money is doubled zhis time as it's vill be split between you and partner" </p><p>So they want you to carry the burden of another contestant (who's probably not the best at cooking) on your shoulders? What kind of bullshit is this! You didn't sign up for this. This screams disqualification. Yes, you had to manage a lot of people in your area of work but this is a goddamn competition! Well, there's nothing you can do other than give up a good fight before losing. The universe was surely not only your side today. </p><p>"Nov I'll announce your partner, zhen chefs, line up at your stations and your partner vill come to you" he said with a wink.</p><p>Oh boy this is going down hill faster than you expected.</p><p>"First up Chef Emma Mogens and Xiao Mei, second Chef Kiku Honda and Alfred Jones, third Chef Leon Chun and Emil Steilsson, fourth Chef Carlos Machado and Mathew Williams, fifth Chef Elizabeta Hédeváry and Roderich Edilstein, sixth Chef Y/N L/N and Authur Kirkland, seventh Chef Antonio Fernandez and Lovino Vagras, eighth Chef Lukas Bondevik and Mathis Køhler lastly Chef Feliciano Vagras and my own little bruder LUDWIG BELISCHMIDT!" as Mr. Belischmidt announced the last name very loudly and muscular blond with blue eyes from the home cooks' team gave him an annoyed glare and made his way to his partner's station.</p><p>Who was your partner again? A guy named Arthur Kirkland? Sounds way too British. That doesn't look like a good sign. Okay Y/N, that was whole another level of stereotyping. Just because he's British doesn't mean he can't cook! There are great British chefs out there, but this was a simple home cook, what if he is terrible at this? You can't carry that burden too. Or worse what if he's some bossy asshole? Whoever it was you are going to have work with it.</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>Yes I know most of the characters you love are not here but I promise you, sooner or later they'll make an appearance.Thank you😘</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0004"><h2>4. Scones</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>A young, you may say handsome blond boy with emerald green orbs and 'impressive' eyebrows walked to your station. You gave him a whole hearted smile which he returned with a dirty look. That wasn't so nice. What's his deal? I mean you were not enjoying this situation you were in either but there's no need to be rude. Maybe you assumed correctly when you thought he'd be an ass. Great! Now everything is perfect. If you wanted to seem professional you might as well introduce yourself with confidence, or so you thought.</p><p>"Hello, I'm Y/N L/N-"</p><p>The blond frowned as he interrupted you."I know, Y/N, I heard the host"</p><p>"Oh okay, so you are Arthu-"</p><p>"For heaven's sake were you not listening to the host? Yes, I'm Arthur." The blond scoffed as he answered in his British accent.</p><p>After that you realized it would be the best if you just shut up. What crawled up his ass? He did look a pretentious snob, but you can't judge a book by its cover. However you can't let this person be disheartened with you. If you wanted to win this contest you have to approach him slow and steady and befriend him. It'll be like taming a furious wood-land creature,but it'll be worth it. You wondered how Toni was doing. You didn't see him infront of you maybe he's in a station in the back. You took a quick turn and saw that Toni has encountered a same fate as you. He was standing next to a very grumpy looking man with arbrun hair and a weird curl and, he was angrier than Mr.butt-head next to you. You assumed it was his twin in the front row with Mr. Belischmidt's brother because of their uncanny resemblance.</p><p>Toni caught your glance and returned a nervous wave and a smile. The poor guy looked exhausted. Although there were some other partners who were getting along quite well. Like the two girls infront of you. They blabbing with each other since they met at the stations which made you envious. Why didn't you get partnered up with a friendly female? The guys next to them were doing quite well too. In the station in the back you saw a quite young duo. One was Chinese and the other was European? They looked as if they were around the ages 17-18. There were younger contestants on the show but it was pretty rare. </p><p>As you all started to get 'comfortable' with your partners the host got ready to announce the challenge.</p><p>"Now let ze awesome me tell you not so awesome people about today's challenge! As this is a trial session ve vant jou to make something that is so simple and can be made vithin 35 minutes. It doesn't matter if it's a dessert or a snack. Zhere vill be no disqualifications in this round but ve will be picking the best team. This is a practice round to see jour coordination with jour partner. The twist is that the chef should create a meal selected by the home cook. Both of jou should work together. Think zhis as a velcome party"</p><p>You glanced at Arthur seeking for a bit of comfort and all you got back was a irritated scoff.</p><p>"Jour time starts NOW!"</p><p>Everyone started to discuss among each other and some already started rushing into the storage room.</p><p>"So what do you-"<br/>
 <br/>
You were rudely cut off by the Brit again. "Scones." He said boredly</p><p>Scones? That was far too simple! Everyone was going come up with something amazing! You can't just present a plain scone, but......if you take the 'plain' part out and put in lemon and raspberry, it sounds way better! Maybe with a bit of jam and butter too. </p><p>You rushed to the storage area as you scanned for ingredients. Toni was leaving the storage area and didn't forget to flash you an adorable smile on his way. You reach in the fridge to grab the butter which was the only one left as another hand reached in. You made eye contact with the owner of the other hand.</p><p>"Oh sorry dudette did you want this?" The blue-eyed blond asked. Wasn't he on the station next to you?</p><p>"Um yeah kind of. It's kind of mandatory in my recipe....do you want it?" </p><p>"Oh it's fine, we were about melt it anyways. Keep it. I don't wanna ruin a pretty chick's day cause I wanted butter" The blond answered as gave a shiny smile and turned back to leave "Good luck dudette!"</p><p>Okay, (Y/N) focus, it's not time to get flustered. That's all on your list, now you can get to work. That a took good 6 minutes. Now you gotta start baking.</p><p>"Now Arthur please follow my instructions-" </p><p>"Oh please, do you think I don't know anything about scones? I can handle this myself" he answered. What's the deal with this guy.</p><p>"Listen please, we have to co-operate if we want to win. Now please start with chopping the raspberries. We can fight later!" You answered with sigh. At least he started following your  instructions. </p><p>He murmured on about something while he was up to his task.</p><p>You started going through the recipe in your head. Okay start off with the dry ingredients, flour, baking the the wet ingredients milk, eggs and lemon juice then the butter. Make sure not to over work the dough, and perfect! Oh and the sugar and the raspberries. </p><p>"Arthur can you pass me the raspberries please? And the sugar?"</p><p>He passed you the raspberries which was chopped sloppily. So, he had terrible knife skills too. Then he passed you the sugar. After you added it to the mixture, you kneaded the dough, cut it with a cookie cutter and set in the oven. </p><p>You advised Arthur to pick up some condensed milk from the storage area, so that you could make a cream for the desert.<br/>
______________________</p><p>"15 seconds contestants! 14, 13, 12, 11, 10........."</p><p>The scones were done and nicely plated and you were adding the finishing touches by drizzling cream on top. You ran out of time before you could taste it but you were confident. Making scones were simple and you hardly got it wrong. </p><p>"Okay everyone hands off jour station. Now get jour awesome dishes to zhe judge."</p><p>One by one the participants went in order, there were varities of dishes like pancakes, waffles, doughnuts, takoyaki? and many more sweet pastries. Geez you had alot of competition ahead of you.</p><p>You and Arthur was up next to present your dish. The judges gave you a polite smile as you placed the dishes. </p><p>"Ma Cherie, what do you 'ave for us today?" Chef Bonnefoy asked politely.</p><p>"I- We made raspberry and lemon scones, sir" you nervously trying not to suffer.</p><p>"That's a very bold move, I must say. Because scones are quite.... tasteless in my opinion, but you have added some spazz to it with the raspberry and lemons. So let's see how it tastes" Chef Bonnefoy replied.</p><p>"Kesesesesese, isn't scones as in British food? Kesesesese" Mr. Belischmidt piped in. </p><p>You saw Arthur's eyebrows twitching as he heard that statement. He must really love scones.</p><p>Your heart began to race as the judges began to take bites out of the scones. What's it's gonna be? You made sure the scones were extra fluffy too. There was no way it could be bad.</p><p>"Oh my God, these are.........."<br/>
______________________________________</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>Yeah I know cliffhanger boo right, but a gal's gotta do something to keep the story going 🤣<br/>I really hope you enjoy this. Please vote and point out if any mistakes are there. Thank you😘</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0005"><h2>5. Panic</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>"Oh my god, these are TERRIBLE! Absolute no, no. Why does it taste so salty?!" Judge Yao yelled as he spit it out into a napkin. The other judges did the same. That took out a huge chunk of your self-esteem.</p><p>You saw Mr. Belischmidt in the corner smirking like a manic at their reaction.</p><p>Salty? What? No it can't be. You made sure the scones had a perfect amount of salt which was a pinch. It couldn't have made a drastic change to the scone. You saw Arthur glancing at you and waiting for a reaction.</p><p>"I don't think that's possible chef. I only added a pin-" You spoke up and got cut-off by Judge Adnan.</p><p>"I think you have replaced sugar with salt in your recipe, Chef (Y/N). It's pretty disappointing that this was the outcome even after two of you worked together, I don't know who is responsible for it, but you two better get it together. At least it looked good and the texture was fine too" </p><p>"Oui, you scones were very fluffy too. So, don't worry, you two, this is a trial round anyways. I wish you two good luck in the ze next round" Chef Bonnefoy said as gave you two a polite smile.</p><p>Chef Wang on the other hand looked mad. He remained silent. Perfect! Now you had Chef Wang on your bad side. </p><p>You did your walk of shame back to your station as the others went on with their dishes. You looked at Arthur who looked frustrated as you are. How did all that salt get into those scones anyways? Was someone trying to sabotage you? </p><p>Then it hit you. Didn't you tell Arthur to pass the sugar? He must have accidentally passed the SALT! So it was him who messed it up. You could confront him right now but that would turn into a huge argument and then you'll never get him to co-operate. You could remain silent for now. Maybe you can talk to him about it after the show. </p><p>"Why are you staring at me?" You were snapped out your thoughts as you heard a familiar British accent.</p><p>"Wh- I wasn't staring at you. I was trying process everything that just happened. I wonder who is responsible for all this" you said through gritted teeth. Come on, (Y/N), control your temper. You promised yourself you wouldn't start a fight.</p><p>"Well it's obviously one of the two of us. It's nothing much to 'wonder' about" he replied.</p><p>The nerve of this guy. "Thank you for pointing that out, genius" you muttered.<br/>
_________________</p><p>"Okay contestants, all jour dishes have been judged and we are ready to announce the winning team of zhis challenge!" Mr. Belischmidt yelled. Yes, yelled, that seems to be the only thing he does. You would have been excited for this but all that got sucked out of you after you realized you had no chance.</p><p>"The winning team if CHEF ELIZABETA AND HOME COOK RODERICH!" </p><p>Good for them you thought, but this round was a trail so it doesn't matter if you win or not. You had to agree, their dessert looked amazing. They looked very delicate and must have tasted amazing.</p><p>The two contestant were cheered by everyone. They gave each other a quick hug and the girl was a blushing mess. That was quite cute. The girl looked very friendly. You might as well approach her after the show and try to befriend her. You need to interact with these people if you are going to compete with them, starting with your own partner. What made you wonder about the home cooks was the fact that they were not equally talented. Home cooks like Roderich, Mei and Antonio's grumpy partner did amazing while the others not so much. They should have at least have above average skills to get in right? You recalled Arthur's knife skills. It almost looked like he held the knife for the first time. How did he get in here? And the blue-eyed blond in the next station, he wasn't bad but he was really messy and ended up turning their dish into an abomination. At least you were not alone in your shame corner. Chef Kiku look so frustrated as well.</p><p>"Okay now zhat is over we have a new suprise for you!"</p><p>Come on no more suprises. You've already had enough for today. This was getting exhausting the passing minute. You almost regretted entering the contest at that point. </p><p>"Do jou remember how we informed you zhat you'll be competing in different destinations each month?"</p><p>At least you get to travel to different countries. That made you feel a whole lot better about entering the contest. You weren't expecting that when you entered the contest.</p><p>"We also promised to give jou high quality accommodation. Zhe suprise is, zhis time contestants won't be living alone! Chefs you will be living with jour partner in a mini-apartment!"</p><p>What! No is that even legal! It was basically an invasion to your privacy! You should have read that contract before you singed it. And now you have to live with Mr. Grump. You couldn't stand being around in the kitchen with him now you'll never get rid of him. </p><p>On the plus side, when you get one on one time you could maybe try to get on his good side? You could get him to warm up. </p><p>Out of the blue you had the urge to cry out now, why? you didn't know.</p><p>"Zhis will be important as you have noticed not all the home cooks are equally skilled. The home cooks were not selected by video submission or because of their above average cookery skills cause where's ze fun in zhat? They were handpicked randomly by zhe judges! So we want jou chefs to mentor them and bring them to an equal or better level!" Now it all makes sense. No wonder some lacked the ability to cook.</p><p>"If jou want to win this you'll have to train your partner and battle for success! Get ready for a journey of jour life time everybody! We'll see jou next time on Top Master Chef!" Mr. Belischmidt ended. </p><p>"That's a warp! Contestants please remain backstage. We have important announcements" The director yelled.<br/>
____________________</p><p>All the contestants started to gather backstage. There was chitter chatter everywhere and you saw Toni slowly approaching you. However you couldn't focus. There was a heavy feeling in your chest and you didn't know why? Sudden stream of tears start to form in your eyes, then the hiccups began. You were full blown crying right now. </p><p>"Woah woah chica are you okay?" Antonio asked you as he came closer and held your hand. This caught the attention of the whole room. Perfect, now everyone must think you are sone drama queen. You saw some people coming in closer. You covered your face in your hands in a desperate measure to hide yourself.</p><p>"Hey dudette you okay? Did someone hurt you?" The blue-eye blond asked coming closer with a concerned look.</p><p>"Woah why are you crying?" You heard many voices around you. Some said 'what's her deal?' and 'is she really crying?' and 'she must me stressed out'. It was humiliating.</p><p>"Bella, oh no what's wrong? Is everything ok?" A boy with arbrun hair and a curl rushed to you. You started crying harder after you saw all the attention and the concerned looks you got. You hated feeling weak and vulnerable. Now you were full on sobbing.</p><p>"Stupido fratello! You made it worse! Come back here" the other arbrun haired man dragged him by the collar away from you.</p><p>"Oh no darling, are you okay? Why are jou crying? Okay everyone don't flock around her give her some space. Now listen dear, deep breaths okay" Elizabeta said as she came in for comfort. You should have calmed down after that, but no you sobbed harder. What's the deal with you? You were never like this.</p><p>"Mes Chéris, what's the rukus here? Did someone start a fight?" Chef Bonnefoy said amusedly as he walk into the scene. Everyone moved out of his way and let him approach you. Good job, (Y/N). Now the judges will think you are a cry baby. Your mom and dad would be so worried if they found out you broke down like this. Even you couldn't wrap your finger around the reason for your sudden break down. </p><p>Chef Bonnefoy's amused expression soon turned into a one of concern as he saw your state. </p><p>"Oh no, ma Cherie, what's wrong?" Chef Bonnefoy asked as he came closer and put a hand on your shoulder and one on your waist and pulled you closer to him. He slowly took the your hand covering your face in one of his. You were so embarrassed right now, you couldn't even look at his face. </p><p>"Ma Cherie, look at me." You looked up to his eyes. You didn't know what happened but all your breath heaving sobbing just stopped when you looked into his eyes. You instantly started to calm down and felt his positive aura surround you. You forgot about all your worries for a minute, but then it was followed by shame. While yourl were trying to process everything you felt Chef Bonnefoy hug you and start rubbing comforting circle on your back. It felt good even though you wanted to deny it. You forgot that you were not alone for a second.</p><p>"I'm sorry I caused a scene" you spoke up."I don't know what happened, I just felt the urge to do it. I don't usually do this. I'm sorry for making everyone worry-"</p><p>"Oh ma Cherie you don't 'ave to apologize. This is a normal thing. You were exhausted, oui? It happens to most people when they start working in a new environment. This is 'ow your body responded to it. There is nothing with shedding a tear once in awhile, know? It's is just stress. Now wipe those tear, they don't look good on a belle fille like you" Chef Bonnefoy said as he let go of the hug.</p><p>"Thank you so much, Chef Bonnefoy. I'm so grateful for this" you replied.</p><p>"Oh, ma Cherie, just call me Francais, 'Chef Bonnefoy' make me feel old," he said as he sent you a wink.</p><p>You were flustered alright. You just got hugged by a man whom people would give everything to breath the same air as. He was no doubt more attractive up close. You were envious of how shiny his blond hair was.</p><p>"Say, ma cherie, who was your partner again?" you were about to answer before you got interrupted again.</p><p>"I am, is there a problem, frog face?" Arthur answered. Wait, did he actually insult a judge. That's it you are going to pack your shit and leave.</p><p>"Honhonhon nice you see you again mon ami, I picked you cause I wanted to see you again. Honhon you still 'aven't got rid of that terrible haircut, I see"</p><p>"What did you say about my hair cut again you freak!? Take it back right now!"</p><p>"Honhonhon I was kidding no need to get mad"</p><p>"Why you little-"</p><p>"Yeah, I'd hate to interrupt this but, do you dudes like, know each other?" The blue-eyed blond who you guessed was Alfred asked.</p><p>"Oui, we do. All through middle school and high school. Ah good times" Chef Francis said with one hand on his chin.</p><p>"There was nothing good about it frog! You fought with me all through it!" Arthur yelled. Well look like, Mr. Perfect lost his composure.</p><p>They went on with their brickering as you backed away from the scene. You were hoping to introduce yourself to everyone here but now you can't even face them. </p><p>Suddenly you felt someone touch your shoulder.</p><p>"Um hallo, you are Chef (Y/N), right?" It was the cute short haired girl infront of your station.</p><p>"Yeah, I am. I'm sorry if I bother with all that. I don't know why I did that."</p><p>"No, no it's fine. I just wanted to introduce myself. I'm Emma Mogen from Belgium. I get you. It's pretty hard to adjust and take all this in. You must have had a panic attack. I would have had one if I haven't met Mei over here."</p><p>A long black-brownish haired girl with sparkling hazel eyes who was next to her gave a small wave.</p><p>"Hi, I'm Xiao Mei. Nice to meet you (Y/N)....?"</p><p>"L/N" you said as you gave her a smile.</p><p>"Oh, I'm from Taiwan. Where are you from?" </p><p>"From (C/N). I wish I found someone like one of you guys as your partner. You see, I'm not trash talking my partner, but he isn't the friendliest." You said while looking down a bit.</p><p>"Ja, I can see that with what's going on over there. He seem to have bad blood with Chef Bonnefoy." Emma said while looking at the duo who was still brickering in the background.</p><p>"Oh my God, I can't believe Chef Bonnefoy came in and hugged you! That was so sweet of him, don't you think?" Mie asked you excitedly. She must be a fan of the show too.</p><p>"Yeah, I'm still a bit embarrassed though. I can't believe I showed them a side like that" you answered while scratching the back of your head.</p><p>"Aw, it's nothing to be embarrassed about" Emma said trying to comfort you.</p><p>"Emma Mogens and Xiao Mei! I need Emma and Mei. Please come and get your housing arrangements!." The director, Jamie called out.</p><p>"Ah that's our, queue, see you soon (Y/N)" Emma said while rushing away.</p><p>"See ya (Y/N), we should have a slumber party if we get the time! Bye" Mei said waving back at you as she walked away.</p><p>Slumber party? That would be fun. The last slumber party you had was before graduation in culinary school. It would have been so much better if you didn't have to compete with these people. Majority of them seemed really nice. Another tap on your shoulder snapped you out of your thoughts.</p><p>"Hello Miss (Y/N)" it was a timid looking Japanese guy. He had quite emotionless but pretty hazel eyes. You have to stop looking at people eyes like a creep.</p><p>"Oh, hello there"</p><p>"Um I'm Kiku Honda. I was concerned because I saw you were um...." he hesitated to finish his sentence</p><p>"Yeah, that, I don't know what got into me. I-"</p><p>"Keeks buddy there you are! Oh- wait, it's you again dudette. Man everyone knows your name now. You are-" the loud American was interrupted by Kiku as he got hit in the back of his head.</p><p>"Mr. Jones please stop. That is very insensitive. You are going to hurt Miss. (Y/N)'s feelings"</p><p>"No it's fine, I know. I'm (Y/N) (L/N) by the way." you answered flashing them a small smile.</p><p>"Sorry that I kinda went too far there, I'm Alfred Jones or you can call me the hero!" This made Kiku roll his eyes. </p><p>"Alfred Jones and Kiku Honda. Please get your housing arrangements!" The director called out.</p><p>"Oh we gotta go now. See you soon dudette!" He said as he ran out with a wave.</p><p>"He's quite the the handful, huh?" You said giggling a bit.</p><p>"Hai. I'm not certain I'll survive with his childish antics." He said as he sighed exhaustedly. "I will see you later then Miss. Y/N."</p><p>"See you later!" You said as you gave him a wave. To your unknownst the Japanese man was blushing as he walked away.</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>Whoop there goes my longest chapter yet. I have to keep writing longer chapters cause it's so much fun. I'm going to get some inspiration for this from Food Wars. Yeah I know not the best idea . I really hope you enjoy this. Please vote and point out if any mistakes are there.😘<br/>Thank you for your support ❤️</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0006"><h2>6. 303</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>To your unbeknownst, there was Judges Wang and Adnan, watching the whole ordeal.</p><p>"Francis is such a player, look at him over there aru. How unprofessional. If they want to cry, let them aru. There's nothing we can do. This is a tough competition." Yao said to the man next to him as he scoffed.</p><p>"You can say that again. He's always like this around girls. What a flirt. If he keeps babying them like that, nobody is going to take this competition seriously." Sadik added in agreement.</p><p>"I agree. He's probably doing that to bash that girl's partner aru. Remember how excited he was after he saw that application?"</p><p>"That makes sense now. Maybe he's trying to play the good cop? Who knows. That guy's head is a bag full of cats" Sadik said as he shrugged.<br/>
___________________________</p><p>While you were waiting for your housing arrangements you've met many people. You met this guy from Denmark called Matthais, and his Norwegian partner Lukas. The Dane was, you'd say quite energetic and loud while his partner was the complete opposite.</p><p>You also met the arbrun haired guy who tried to comfort you earlier and his partner. He participated in this competition along with his brother thinking they could work together but due their qualifications they were put into different groups. You got to know his name was Feliciano Vagras and his brother's name was Lovino. The cheery Italian also introduced his partner who was a blue eyed,blond, bulky looking man, named Ludwig. Not to forget he was the brother of the host, yet he seemed to be the complete opposite of him.</p><p>"Y/N L/N and Arthur Kirkland please get your housing arrangements!" The director called out.</p><p>You looked at Arthur who was already making his way to the director without you. You rushed to catch up with him.</p><p>"Ah, there you are. Heard you had a little incident earlier, Miss Y/N. Are you okay now?" The director asked passing you a polite smile.</p><p>"Yes, thank you for your concern." You said as you returned a polite smile.</p><p>"Okay now, here you go, this is the location of your housing and two key cards for it.  There is a vehicle outside that'll drop you off there.The luggages you left at the reception store room is also loaded in the vehicle. If you see anything missing you can talk with the reception. I hope you two have a great stay." He said as he passed you and Arthur each a key card.</p><p>_________</p><p>You arrived at your small apartment after long car ride followed by a painfully awkward silence. Your space was in the 6th floor. The place wasn't very luxurious or austere either. It was right in between.</p><p>Thank God for elevators cause you were not in the position to climb stairs after a long day like that. Arthur was unsettlingly silent with some muttering here and there. You guessed he was tired too. As the elevator opened up, both of you scrambled in with your luggages. You pressed in the number of your floor and waited patiently for it to take you there. </p><p>You glanced at Arthur for a bit maybe to get a reaction like excitement to finally get some rest but nothing. He just looked bored. </p><p>The elevator dinged as it stopped in the designated floor. You wondered where others could have been as you scrambled out of there. Where they here? Or maybe in another building perhaps? </p><p>You saw that your floor had a single hallway with two large doors facing each other on the walls. Must be the two room for the two of you. You looked at your key card to see the number '303'.</p><p>"Um hey Arthur what's your room number?" </p><p>"303. What's yours?"</p><p>"Wait what! You are 303 too! Does this mean the want us to be in the same-"Why the hell didn't they warn you about this shit! You thought you were going to have to share a same floor not the same space.</p><p>"So, what you are saying is, we are going to have to share the same-!" Arthur's shocked expression was similar to yours.</p><p>Suddenly the other door or the room facing yours opened up, to reveal Alfred who had a huge smile on his face.</p><p>"Dudette! Is that you! Oh my gosh! I can believe we are sharing the same floor!" Alfred came in and tackled you in a hug.</p><p>"Alfre- I can't brea- le- go" you voice was muffled you where tightly pressed against his chest.</p><p>"Let her go you git! You are suffocating her!" Arthur added with a scoff.</p><p>"Oh sorry dudette, my bad, I got a little excited." </p><p>"Nah, it's fine." You said as you tried to regain your composure."I'm so happy to see you here too Alfie. Where's Kiku?"</p><p>You swore you so a small blush on the American's face as he heard the nickname. It made you giggle a bit on the inside.</p><p>"Oh Kiku- oh yeah- he's inside. He said something about having a long bath or something. He's been in there for like 30 minutes. I think I'm gonna have to check up on him sooner or later to see if he's alive" Alfred said while looking a bit concerned.</p><p>"You really shouldn't do that. Kiku looks like someone who enjoys long baths and he's probably tired" you said as you gave him a small giggle. He was like a little puppy. How cute.</p><p>"Yeah maybe you are right. So you are going to move in with this guy?" Alfred moved closer to your ear and continued in a whisper "Are you gonna be okay? He seems like a stick in the mud"</p><p>"I HEARD THAT YOU BLOODY GIT! How dare you!"</p><p>"Oh,no wonder you are so stuck up. You are British!" the American continued while laughing.</p><p>"And what is wrong with that, you asshat! Y/N are we going to our room or what?" </p><p>"Oh yeah, sure. Let's go. See you later Alfie. Tell Kiku I came by" You said gave him a small wave.</p><p>"Wait dudette! Before you go, can I get your number? It's kinda important for emergencies and all that jazz, plus I'll send you memes" Alfred asked as he sent a wink your way.</p><p>"Sure here you go, and now that you have vowed to send me memes don't even think of disappointing me" you said as you giggled.</p><p>"You have my word dudette" Alfred said as he gave you a thumbs up.<br/>
________________</p><p>You finally came inside your apartment. It was very spacious and well furnished. It had a living room, a kitchenette with utensils, a stocked fridge with basic ingredients like eggs, milk, flour, vegetables etc., cabinets filled with spices and some snacks and lastly two rooms with annexed bathrooms. It was modern looking with a cozy touch. </p><p>You where now in your room. You looked at the fluffy bed and fought the urge to jump on it. You would have gone to sleep right away but you were starving. You were contemplating on cooking your own dinner or ordering take out. It was going to be a waste to not use the ingredients you have at hand. Then it's decided, you are going to cook your own dinner. You almost forgot that you had to cook for two. You wondered what he would like. </p><p>You can go ask him after a nice hot shower. You had to call (F/N) too and tell her about fiasco cause you were not going to tell a word about it to your parents and worry them. (F/N) will probably laugh along with you. You were also excited to tell her that you Chef Bonnefoy. You took out your phone and sent (F/N) a text telling her to call you when she's free.<br/>
__________________</p><p>After your shower, you went on to Arthur's door to ask him about dinner. As you were about to knock, the door opened to reveal a Brit with disheveled hair. Even though you wanted to deny it, he looked really adorable.</p><p>"So, did you just stand there until I come out of my room? Desperate for my company, I see?" he said with a cocky grin.</p><p>"WAIT! What? No, you idiot! I was about knock on your door and then you-" you where a full blown tomato now.</p><p>"I get it, Y/N. You don't have to be so flustered about it. Anyways did you want something?" he said as his grin faltered.</p><p>"Well, I was about to make some dinner and I wanted to know if you' d like anything" you said while scratching the back of your head.</p><p>"Dinner, eh? I didn't even think about it, I was about to go to sleep right away" he said looking down a bit.</p><p>"Nonsense, you are gonna have dinner with me and that's it and you are going to help me! Consider it a part of your training. Be in the kitchen in 5 minutes" you said as you huffed.</p><p>"I'll come along with you." he said as he rolled his eyes.</p><p>____________</p><p>"I think you have realized by now that I'm not good at this whole thing" Arthur said as he overlooked the kitchen.</p><p>"Well lucky for you, I'm very good at this" you said with a smile on your face. "but I'm curious. I don't mean to offend you but I saw your knife skills earlier and it looked like you've never held a knife in your entire life. Is there more to it?"</p><p>"Well, that wasn't offensive at all!" he said with a huff as he crossed his hands " but to answer your question, yes, it's been a long time since I held a knife because it's usually the servants who-"</p><p>"Servants?! You mean you are like rich! Why are you even here?" You knew he looked snobby but this took you by surprise. You are going to have to teach this pretentious rich boy to cook? What a joke!</p><p>"Yes, I could say that. My mother is a popular political figure in the UK. I'm not going to tell you who she is because we barely know each other. Well now that you've heard my story. What's yours?" he said staring down at you.</p><p>"Well, first you have to explain why you are here! What purpose do you even have here?" </p><p>A smirk made way to his face. "You are a stubborn little thing, aren't you? I suppose, I could tell you, considering you are my partner. Well, my immensely annoying brothers put me up for this. They signed me up for the competition without my permission and called me coward when I refused to participate. When I got 'randomly' selected they started pressuring me more to enter it. You could say I'm here to prove them wrong." </p><p>He going to go through all that trouble to prove them wrong? This guy is really something alright.</p><p>"Well, okay, and I promise I'll help you get through this contest." you said as you gave him a smile and a thumbs up.</p><p>"Tch, I don't need your help to win" </p><p>"Oh no, hun, you do, cause I need you to win this too. If you reject my offer to teach you, I'll just have to use force." you said smirking devilishly as many ideas popped in to your head.</p><p>"Force? What do you me-"</p><p>He was cut off as your phone began to ring in your pocket. You took it out to see that it was (F/N). </p><p>"Oh sorry, I have to take this. It won't take long, I swear"</p><p>You heard Arthur mutter something along the lines of 'I don't care. Take all the time you want."</p><p>"Hey (F/N) It's me-"</p><p>"I know it's you bitch! Tell me all about your day! I was waiting all day for this so how did it go? Did you win? I know you did!"</p><p>"Well-"<br/>
_________________</p><p>"Wait what then Judge Bonnefoy came in and hugged you? Like for real! Man that guy's like really, really, really hot. How did he smell! Must have smelled like expensive French perfume." (F/N) said as she swooned through the phone. That girl needs help.</p><p>"Well, I can't remember what he smelled like cause I don't go around sniffing people like creeps unlike someone I know" you said with a chuckle. </p><p>"Hey! I'm not a creep! That was just an assumption. Anyways why the hell did you cry you sad bitch. If your mom knows she's going to freak out."</p><p>"Probably because of stress, promise me you wouldn't tell mom, okay?"</p><p>"You have my word. Anyways try not cry like a lil bitch again. It's not 'you'. I'll talk to you later. Adios" you heard (F/N) said she cut the line.</p><p>"Yeah, Bye"<br/>
_____________________</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>This story is slow burn like real life lmao. I really hope you enjoy this. Please vote and point out if any mistakes are there.😘<br/>Thank you for your support ❤️</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0007"><h2>7. Texts</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>As you finished talking with (F/N), a notification popped up on your phone. You click on it and saw that it said 'You have been added to a group' on your text message app. Who would add you to a group at this time? Maybe your friends have created a new group or something. Another notification popped up right after and it was a text from Alfred.</p><p>'Sup dudette, it's me the hero. I added you to a group chat with all the people from the contest(◠‿・)'</p><p>Then another text message popped up. </p><p>'I know its pretty weird but I thought it'll be helpful to get to know each other and stuff and you know for emergencies etc'</p><p>'Btw add the British dude if you can, k?'</p><p>Alfred really loved having someone's company, didn't he. You texted him back.</p><p>'Alright cool, but where did you get all the numbers? Lol ya stalking us Alfie?ಠ_ʖಠ'</p><p>This guy must be really good at making friends to have all the numbers collected this easily.</p><p>'lmao you wish dudette'</p><p>'Well I got the number of this guy from Denmark, his name was Matthais or smth, long story short he added his partner to the group and the chain went on'</p><p>That explains it. You texted him back.</p><p>'So you added me last? Hmph you forgot about me Alfie?ಥ╭╮ಥ'</p><p>You giggled as you pressed the send button. You wanted to see his reaction.</p><p>'Wat no dudette! I totally would have added you first! Forgive me pwease (ᗒᗩᗕ)'</p><p>His response made you chuckle. Could he stop being a cute puppy. </p><p>'Okay forgiven, but you gotta make up for it. How about those memes?'</p><p>'I have a better offer. Kiku and I are going shopping for ingredients tomorrow evening. (Ngl I'm only going to buy snaccs) Why don't you tag along with us? I'll buy you ice cream(͡°‿ ͡°)'</p><p>When you think about it you had to get some ingredients of your own other than the ones you already have. You had to train Arthur,try out new dishes and practice your skills too, so the varieties and amount of supplies you have were not going to be sufficient for all that. Also keyword, 'ice cream'. Who'd want to pass up on a chance to get free ice cream, so of course you were going to go.</p><p>'of course I'll be there. (｡•̀ᴗ-)I have to get some ingredients too. Btw can Arthur come? I really need to teach him all about this stuff ತ_ತ'</p><p>You waited for his reply.</p><p>'oof Brit dude?'</p><p>'Yeah sure. I forgot you were a chef too(*_*). Keeping up with you guys are gonna be hard'</p><p>Well he wasn't wrong about it. It's going to take a lot of getting used to for home cooks to catch up to you all. Kudos for whoever pitched in this genius yet twisted tv show idea.</p><p>'Yeah yeah gn you dork. See you tomorrow'</p><p>'Gn to you too dudette (づ｡◕‿‿◕｡)づ'</p><p>This dork and his emojis. It made you wonder what he did for living. Your best bet was he was a entertainer, maybe like a DJ or something like that. He seems like a fun loving guy. </p><p>You searched up the group members and found the numbers of Toni and Feliciano. You texted them a 'Hi' and put your phone back in your pocket. After dinner maybe you should try texting Emma and Mei and see if they are in the same building. You would have gone and look for them right now but you were worn out for the day.</p><p>______________</p><p>"Hey, I'm back" you said as you made your way back to the kitchenette. "Did ya miss me?"</p><p>"Nope"</p><p>"Geez okay tough crowd." You said putting your hands up in defense. "So where were we?"</p><p>Arthur looked at you boredly "You were about to tell me about yourself"</p><p>"Pretty sure that's not where I stopped  but whatever. Well I'm Y/N L/N from C/N. I'm fresh out of culinary school so I'm working as a chef . I live with my parents and my (s/g) at the moment and I work part-time at a restaurant. That's all about me" you said in one breath.</p><p>"Well that doesn't explain why you are here. I told you my reason. It's only fair if you tell me yours too" he said as he crossed his hands.</p><p>"Oh yeah that. Well I was a huge fan of the show and there's stuff I could do with the prize money like starting my own restaurant or maybe buying my own place and all that" you said like it's a monologue.</p><p>"Oh well then, we are equal. No more questions about each other's personal lives" He said as he held out his hand for you to shake. At least he's kind of warming up to you. </p><p>"Okay then" you took his hand and gave it firm shake."So what you want for dinner? I was going to make a noodle soup. Is there anything special you like?"</p><p>You saw a light blush form on his face.  What was that about? Was he embarrassed to be around you? You heard him softly mutter something.</p><p>"I'm sorry, what was that?"</p><p>"I said I'm fine with whatever you are. Now how can I help you?" he said averting his gaze. It wouldn't take a genius to realize this guys was a total tsundere. You could have some fun with this.</p><p>"Oh yeah. You are on chopping the vegetables, but not alone this time. I'm going to help. You really need to train your hand with the knife. Hold on let me get the veggies" </p><p>You went on collected the different vegetables, spices and a knife. You put a chopping board on the counter and started washing the vegetables.</p><p>"Okay done. Come on. Now we are going to prep the ingredients for our soup"</p><p>Arthur hummed in response.</p><p>"I'm going to show you how to hold the knife correctly."</p><p>You took the knife in your hand and waved it around at his face to demonstrate to which he returned an annoyed glare that made you giggle.</p><p>"You have to put your finger and your thumb at the very back of the knife and wrap your fingers around it. That'll give you a firm grip and control over the knife. The basics knife skills are slicing, dicing and mincing. There are other methods like chiffonade, julienne etcetera but for now let's focus on the basics. Let start with the onion. Watch closely. Not too close though"</p><p>You took an onion and started slicing it. </p><p>"Now give it a try!" you said as you moved out of the way. </p><p>"Um okay" Arthur said as he nervously grabbed the knife. "Is this correct?" he asked as he held up the knife. </p><p>"Yeah, but-" you took his hand and moved his hand a bit backwards to the knife "perfect". Arthur eyes widened a bit at the contact.</p><p>He was flustered alright. He quickly made his way to the chopping board and turned his back against you trying to hide his face which didn't go unnoticed by you.</p><p>"Come on go ahead don't be afraid" you said trying to encourage him.</p><p>He started cleaning and slicing the onion like you just demonstrated, a little sloppier but he's trying his best. You realized he had his whole hand flat on the chopping board.</p><p>"Um Arthur don't keep your hand flat on the board. You are going to hurt yourself. Hold the onion firmly and position your hand in a claw shape" you pointed out. He muttered a 'okay' and continued. </p><p>This was just the beginning. After vegetables it's fruits, after that it's sea food and meats then desserts. There's so much you are going to have to teach him. It frustrated you when you thought about it. Now you know how your teachers back at culinary school must have felt when they taught the students. This was going to be quite the adventure.</p><p>"Ouch- Son of a-!" you were snapped out your thought as you heard Arthur yell.</p><p>"Oh my God, are you okay? What happened?" You asked as you checked up on him only to see a bloody finger. Then you looked up to see tears in his eyes. Was he crying?</p><p>"The bloody onion made my eyes sting. I couldn't see what I was doing." he said as he hissed in pain. </p><p>"You could have told me you couldn't see! I wouldn't have eaten you! Run it under some water. I'll go find a first aid kit" There must be a first aid kit here. Where would it be? Oh yeah, the bathroom. You quickly made your way to the bathroom and checked in the cabinet and found it. You rushed back to the kitchen and saw Arthur on a counter stool with a pained look.</p><p>"Give me your hand, quick!" </p><p>You cleaned up the would with cotton with a bit of surgical sprit, it made Arthur hiss in pain so you gently blew on it. You knew it must have been awkward but it was your motherly instincts kicking in. To your unbeknownst this made Arthur's heart race. Why? He didn't know. </p><p>You covered the cut with a bandage and finished it off. "There we go. Good as new. You are gonna have to be ready for alot of accidents like this in the kitchen, but it'll reduce as soon as you get used to the knife-"</p><p>"How did the onions not have that kind impact on you? What's your secret?" he asked giving you a interrogative look.</p><p>You sweat dropped as you answered. "Well it's no secret. It's just experience. In my field of work cutting onions is common so you could say I'm kind of immune to the teary powers of the onion" you continued trying to muster up your best evil laughter. Maybe this'll get a reaction out of him? </p><p>He looked at you with a poker face that said 'I-done-with-this-shit'. Tough crowd alright. This guy needs to lighten up a bit. You almost agreed with Alfred saying he's a stick in the mud.</p><p>"Okay then. I'll continue with the cooking. You can go do anything you like or whatever. Let's start the training tomorrow" you said as you stood up from the stool you were sitting in and made a beeline towards the work area.</p><p>"No wait." you heard Arthur mutter.</p><p>"What was that?"</p><p>"I'll watch you cook." he said averting his gaze. Oh you were going to get a laugh out of this. You needed to get him to loosen up</p><p>"Aww you wanna watch me? Am I that pretty Artie?" you teased him with your fake gushing.</p><p>"No you wanker! I want to learn your ways. I do not have any need to look at you! Don't you dare call me with a stupid nickname, that is very disrespectful" he was blushing mess now. How cute. So it takes so little to get him all worked up like this?</p><p>"Okay chill. You can watch me cook. Take notes if you want, I don't mind." At least he was determined it made you quit happy knowing that"Oh I almost forgot to tell you. Tomorrow evening Alfred and Kiku are going shopping and Alfred invited the both of us too. You are coming right? I have plenty to teach you about the ingredients and-"</p><p>"I'll come. It's not like have anything better to do and I need to buy tea" oh yeah he's British. Brits do love their tea.</p><p>"Oki, so I kinda need your phone number too. There's this chat group of all the contestants and I wanna add you to it. You okay with that?"</p><p>You exchanged numbers and continued with cooking. Arthur was on the side watching your every move carefully. He glanced at you once in a while which went unnoticed by you. You threw in pointers about preparation here and there as your worked on the meal. The aroma of the soup filled the room. The ordor of basil and chicken was prominent in the air. The scent alone could make anyone's mouth water. </p><p>This shocked Arthur a bit. How could someone be this good and fast at cooking? However you were quite disappointed with the fact that you had to used 5-min noodle to make your soup. You usually made your own noodles at home as it was much tastier and healthier. </p><p>________________</p><p>"Dinner is ready. Voila!" you said as you readied 2 servings and 2 bowls. You kept them on the counter and took a seat on one of the stools. You gave one to Arthur and waited for him to taste it.</p><p>"Here you go. So how is it?" </p><p>You patiently waited for his reaction. His eyes widened in suprise as he took his first bite. You already knew it was good so it was no suprise to you.</p><p>"This is- this is amazing! How did you make something like this with simple ingredients like that? You used a little of the spices too. This almost matches up to our personal chef's dishes at home." He said as he took several more bites. </p><p>"Well something's gotta come out of going to culinary school and working in restaurants" you said as you slowly took bites out of your soup.</p><p>Arthur nodded in agreement. You were known for your amazing skills back at home and your academy. t<br/>
That's how you ended up working part-time for two restaurant. Those restaurants considered you a valuable asset and was reluctant to letting you go. Your colleagues at your work places were disappointed to see you go for this year round competition but was nonetheless proud. The owners of the restaurants even offered you a raise begging you to stay but you had to refuse. Not out of pride but to fullfil your dream. The owners promised to keep your position vacant by replacing you with a temporary employee which you were so grateful for. If you do not make it in the contest at least you had a job to go home to.</p><p>You snapped out of your thoughts and thought of striking up a conversation with Arthur. What do you have in common? You both know about Chef Bonnefoy, well, you, not exactly at his standards but you knew him.</p><p>"So you know Chef Bonnefoy? Saw you two were bickering back at the studio."</p><p>Arthur almost choked on his meal. </p><p>"Just when I thought I could have this meal peacefully! Why do you have to mention that snail slupper?" he said as he huffed angrily.</p><p>"Woah why do you hate him that much? He seemed nice" you asked as you chuckled a bit.</p><p>"Nice, you say! That frog face is a  pervert and made my school life miserable along with my brother." he slapped a hand on his mouth as if he had said more than necessary. "But that's none of your business!" he said through his hand covered mouth.</p><p>"Alright then keep your secret to yourself" you snickered at your own meme reference.</p><p>_________________</p><p>Everything was cleaned and you and Arthur bid each other good night and made way to your bedrooms. </p><p>You checked your phone to look at the time only to see several text messages. Mostly from the new group, they were goofing off with memes and cute cat videos. You added in Arthur's phone number as well. You also saw some personal text messages from about 6 people. You checked them out.</p><p>'Antoni: </p><p>'Hola chica, are you doing okay(´∩｡• ᵕ •｡∩') ? </p><p>'Did you have dinner?'</p><p>'Is your partner guy treating you well? I heard he's a bit of an ass'</p><p>'Everyone has put in where they are in the building. Didn't see yoursಠಿヮಠ"</p><p>Antonio being such a mom made you giggle. You put your location on the group chat and replied to all of Toni's messages. You scrolled further to see who else had texted you.</p><p>'Feliciano: </p><p>Ciao Bella. It's so nice to talk with you again. </p><p>Let's hangout later!'</p><p>'Unknown1: </p><p>Hey girl! Saw that you got added to the group chat so I had to get your no. </p><p>This is Mei btw(ᵔᴥᵔ)</p><p>We should have that slumber party sometimes(◠ᴥ◕ʋ)</p><p>'Unknow2: </p><p>Hallo Y/N this is Emma. I hope you are doing okay. Good night!(◍•ᴗ•◍)❤</p><p>'Unknown3:</p><p>Hello Miss (L/N), this is Kiku. Alfred gave me your number. </p><p>We're looking forward to seeing you tomorrow.'</p><p>'Unknown4:</p><p>Hey you remember me? I'm Matthais from earlier (◠‿・)</p><p>I'm not easily forgettable so of course you remember me.</p><p>Hope you are doing fine gn(人*´∀｀)｡*ﾟ+'</p><p>You plopped on your bed and sighed as you replied to all the messages. You realized you should probably send Arthur a text saying good night for the sake of annoying him. You giggle a bit to yourself as you remember how he gets worked up about the smallest things. Finally you kept your phone on the night stand</p><p>You stared at your ceiling as you began to feel drowsy and finally dozed off into a dreamless sleep.<br/>
_____________________________________________________</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>I really hope you enjoy this. Please vote and point out if any mistakes are there.😘<br/>Thank you for your support ❤️</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0008"><h2>8. Pancakes</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>After goodnight sleep you were ready to get on with your day. Waking up early came naturally to you since you began working as a chef. You looked at the alarm clock next to you and saw it was 6:30 in the morning. You didn't have anything specific planned for the day. Maybe you should start by making breakfast for you and Arthur. That of course after taking a shower and looking presentable.</p><p>You took out your phone to check your social media and texts. The group chat caught your eyes as you saw it was filled with a hundreds of messages. Does these people even sleep? The entirety of the chat group was spammed with memes and cute animals pictures. You chuckled to yourself as you looked through it. <br/>_____________________</p><p>After a shower you got dressed in a comfortable t-shirt and shorts and went straight to the kitchen. Your stomach growled as you stepped in. What are you going to cook for breakfast? You could ask Arthur and get some help from him, but he could be fast asleep at this time. What if he's not a morning person? That would add up to his typical grumpiness.</p><p>You carelessly stepped into the kitchenette without paying any attention to your surrounding. You were shocked as soon as you felt another presence in the room. Was it a ghost? No, it was a much more shocking sight. </p><p>You saw Arthur sitting on a stool at the kitchen counter asleep with his head flat on the counter and his arms sprawled carelessly on it. Around him was some chopped vegetables on a board and a pretty thick cook book that said 'Cookery for Beginners'. His hand loosely held a knife. What the hell was he doing sleeping in the kitchen like that? And with a knife in his hands.</p><p>You did what any normal person would do. Poke him on the cheek. You brought a pointed finger to his cheek and pressed it continously. </p><p>"Um hey Arthur, rise and shine. You okay? Come on wakey wakey" you said in the sweetest voice possible to which Arthur responded with a groan. </p><p>"Leave......me.......alone.......Allistor......" he replied drowsily. "I'm.....tired" he continued as he covered his head with his arms.</p><p>Allistor? Must be a someone from his family. Now a way to wake him up. You can't shove him. That would be too dangerous. Suddenly an idea popped in your head. You took a skillet and spatula and slowly approached him. You brought it closer to his earshot.</p><p>"WAKE UP SLEEPY HEAD! WAKE UP! WAKE UP! YOU ARE NOT FALLING A SLEEP IN MY KITCHEN!" you yelled as you repeatedly smacked the spatula on the skillet.</p><p>Arthur flinched and stood straight as he woke up from the sudden out burst.</p><p>"SHUT UP! I'm awake! Put that thing down!" Arthur yelled as he covered his ears. He looked at you like you are the most annoying thing ever to which you responded with a smirk. "Are you always like this in the morning? Loud and annoying?"</p><p>"Well, not always, only when someone falls asleep in the kitchen." you said with a grin "So what were you up to anyways? Were you up all night?  Wait, were you practicing?"</p><p>"Yes, well not all night, I started at 3 and I don't know when I stopped. I took some of your tips too. I thought I'd do this because I couldn't help you with dinner last night" he said averting his gaze.</p><p>You scanned the counter and took the cook book in your hand. "A cook book huh?"</p><p>"Yes, that was given to me by mum before I left England. I didn't expect to have any help here so I tried my best to at least get familiar with cooking." he said as a small smile made it's way to his face at the mention of his mother."Enough of that. What do you think? Be honest with me. Did I do it right, Chef?</p><p>You look at the different vegetables chopped here and there. It was okay. A good improvement from where he was at.</p><p>"It's not bad, but it is still uneven. But you've also got an injured finger so I'll give you an 'A' for the effort. But you are not done yet. The next important step is speed, if you are this eager you'll develop it in no time." you said as you gave him a thumbs up.</p><p>"Is that so? It means I'll have to try harder,eh? Thank you for your criticism." he muttered as he rubbed his eyes.</p><p>"No problem. So what do you want for breakfast? I was thinking of using the ingredients you have already prepped cause I'm not ready to waste anything. I think I saw some bacon and eggs in the fridge-" you said as you wondered around the kitchen.</p><p>"I'm fine with anything" Arthur answered as he yawned. "I think it would be edible no matter what so go ahead" </p><p>"Okay then impromptu meal it is!" you said throwing a fist in the air.</p><p>"Impromptu meal?"</p><p>"It's where I come up with stuff to cook on the spot." You said as you shrugged.</p><p>"Should have guessed that" he said while stretching his arms "I want to observe you"</p><p>"Stalker...." you whispered as you snickered</p><p>"What was tha-" he was cut short by a loud knock at the entrance door to the apartment. Soon after you heard a voice.</p><p>"Dudette open up! The hero is here and I brought you something! Are you wake? Hello!" You heard Alfred's slightly muffled voice through the door.</p><p>"If he shows up every morning like this we are not going to have any peace and quiet at all" Arthur scoffed as he crossed his arms.</p><p>You chuckled and made your way to the door and opened it. Alfred stood infront of you with a huge smile and a plate in his hand.</p><p>"Good morning pal! Look what I have" he said as he showed you the plate. It was pancakes. Not normal pancakes, really fluffy and thick pancakes. They were the fluffiest pancakes you seen and it was topped with maple syrup and butter. It glistened right before your eyes. The sight alone could make anyone's mouth water.</p><p>"Alfie did you make this? Oh wow! These look amazing" you said as you gazed at the plate.</p><p>"Oh me- no! It was Kiku. Lemme tell you these are the best pancakes I've had in my whole American life and I've eaten so many pancakes. So we thought we'd bring you guys some too" he said as he gave you an adorable smile and handed them to you.</p><p>"Aww Alfie that's so sweet of you. I love pancakes. Where's Kiku anyways?"</p><p>"Oh yeah, wait lemme just- KIKU HONDA COME OUT HERE Y/N WANTS TO SEE YOU!" he yelled as he turned his head to the side.</p><p>You saw the timid disheveled Japanese man slowly making his way to their door frame and poking his head out from the doorway "Mr. Jones please don't scream. I would have repried if you called me more gently and politely." Kiku said as he rubbed his ears.</p><p>"Oh sorry dude Y/N wanted to see you." He said scratching the back of his head with a smile.</p><p>"Hai, Good morning Miss. Y/N." Kiku said with a slight bow.</p><p>"Good morning to you too Kiku and please call me Y/N. No need for formalities. Did you make these amazing pancakes?" you asked with a sweet smile.</p><p>"Hai, I hope they are to your liking." he said softly as his cheeks started to dust with pink. "Alfred-san we should leave them alone. It's not appropriate to bother them early in the morning. Gomenasai Y/N-san" he said as he bowed his head.</p><p>"Oh no worries Kiku. Thank you both for the pancakes. I really appreciate it" you said sweetly.</p><p>"No prob dudette. See ya later. You're still up for ice cream, right?" </p><p>"Of course I am. See ya too"</p><p>________________________</p><p>Francis overlooked the building before him. Another typical day at the studio. He sighed as he gazed at it. He hated being called in early in the morning. It ruined his beauty sleep. It was another day of discussing ways to make the life of the contestants miserable and scare the shit out of them to his dismay, of course. </p><p>Even though he was annoyed of the from he still managed to put on his cool facade on attracting the attention of a lot of men and women. He knew he was a sight to the sore eyes and he flaunted his looks like a pro. He still managed to take his time walking to meeting room with his espresso in hand even though he was running late or in his words 'fashionably late'.<br/>He exhaustedly sighed as he entered the room.</p><p>"Hello my darling, sorry for being late. Did you all miss moi?" Francis said as he leaned on the door frame.</p><p>"Aiyah! Why do you have to be so tardy? We were waiting for 15 minutes now" Yao angrily huffed as he crossed his hands.</p><p>"Traffic" Francis answered casually as he walked to his seat on the circular table.</p><p>"We all know that's a lie. How do you have a coffee in your hand then?" Sadik asked boredly as he facepalmed.</p><p>"It's a espresso, oui? I can't maintain my this gorgeousness throughout the day without it" he said a took another sip of his espresso.</p><p>"Ja, ja vhatever let's get down to all zhis. Mr. Director couldn't make it today. He said he is okay vith anyzhing as long as it bring zhe ratings up. Do jou have any ideas?" Gilbert said with a grin. "And check zhe files of zhe competitors, ve need to come up vith something that'll blown zheir minds."</p><p>"Don't you mean toture them?" Francis said as he signed exsparatedly."Cut them some slack there's too much going on for zhem" he continued as he leaned back in his chair. "The contestants are extra cute this season, oui?"</p><p>"Them being cute is not a reason to make this easy for them aru!" Yao replied as he scoffed with a blush.</p><p>"Ya but I kind of agree with Francis. I mean they do have a lot going on. So let's do some changes? Anyone have anything to discuss?" Sadik added.</p><p>Francis slowly raised his hand with a sly grin "Can I go on?"</p><p>"Ja go ahead" Gilbert said boredly.</p><p>"Well we all agreed to disqualify each team on ze each passing month until the best is left right? 'ow about we ditch zhat system and do something else"</p><p>"Like what?" Yao asked as he waited for an answer.</p><p>"Without disqualifying them we could keep them all until the end of the competition." he said with a smirk.</p><p>"Ja uh that sounds stupid" Gilbert said as he kicked a leg up on the table. </p><p>" 'ear me out! Instead of disqualifying them we can start a scoring system. They can collect scores from the success of their dishes and zhe 'ighest score wins. We can also reduce their points if any of their dishes are not up to a standard at any point of the competition. Zhat way everyone will have an opportunity and it's make the viewers more curious" </p><p>Sadik nodded in agreement. "What happens at last?  What if the highest score is a tie in the finale?"</p><p>"Then we can make them compete against each other. It's zhat simple. Audience love to see something unpredictable,oui? Let's give them zhat" he said with a grin</p><p>"Vell I do like zhat idea. I'll send it to zhe Director. He'll know vhat to do" he said as he took a file in his hand. "Now about ze competitors" He started to skim through a file named Y/N L/N. "Vait isn't this the salty scone girl who cried?" he said as he held out the file to everyone to see.</p><p>"Hey zhat's not nice you jerk. She's really sweet!It's that Englishman's fault those scones were salty. Just like 'im. She probably cried because she couldn't bear to be with him. If I knew she was a sweet girl I wouldn't have teamed her up with him." Francis said as he glared at him.</p><p>"Geez jou don't have to be all riled up about it. Zhat's the only way I remembered her." Gilbert said with a sly grin "I can remember ze look in her face when Yao spit out zhe scones" he continued as he laughed loudly.</p><p>"Stop it! Why do you 'ave to be a asshole?" Francis said frustratedly.</p><p>"Here we go again aru. When you are done fighting we have a meeting to get on with" Yao said as he rolled his eyes<br/>________________________</p><p>"These's pancakes are really good. I think you might have some tough competition Y/N" Arthur said as he took bites out of the pancakes with his fork.</p><p>"I know right but I won't give up! I will make even better pancakes tommorow. That's a promise" you said as took another bite and moaned at the taste. Was it even possible to replicate this fluffy goodness? You can't know without trying.</p><p>It went unnoticed by the both of you that you two are currently sharing a plate like a cutesy couple. That was how good those pancakes were.Kiku was one heck of a chef but so were you. Alfred was right. These were the best but that doesn't mean you are going to take second place. </p><p>"Ugh I'm full to the brim- yet I want to taste the food you cooked too" Arthur said as he took his last bite. He realized what he said and blushed instantly. "I mean- u did put effort into it and I don't want it go to waste" he added trying to recover</p><p>"I don't know about you. I'm a glutton and I can go for some more breakfast" you said with a chuckle.</p><p>"Fine, I'll have a plate too then"</p><p>You sent him smug grin as you passed a plate. "So you can't get enough of my cooking huh?" you said as wiggled your eyebrows. </p><p>"Shut up and pass me a plate you git" he answered with a eyeroll.</p><p>Your were about to take the first bite of your food until you were interrupted by your phone ringing. You took it out of your pocket and checked the caller ID. A smile made a way to your face as you saw it was Antonio. </p><p>"Hey Toni. Good morning"</p><p>You heard someone grumbling on the other line and Toni saying 'okay okay I'm sorry'. You waited for his reply.</p><p>'Hola chica, how are you doing? I'm calling to check up on you.'</p><p>"I'm doing fine Toni, thank you for checking up on me. How about you? Are you okay?" With his tone the answer to that was pretty obvious.</p><p>'Si I am, well no, my partner is you might say- a little buttheaded. He gets angry often and told me my food is 'crapola'. I think that's Italian for crap. Please help chica tell me a way to fix this. If he keeps fighting with how am going to win this competition. I won't even make it to the first round' he blabbed on and on like he was about to cry.</p><p>"Toni calm down. If he hears this he'll get more upset"</p><p>'Oh yeah you right. Do you have a solution for this?'</p><p>"I'm not a expert with this stuff but try giving him some space. Maybe try to talk less around him if he gets easily annoyed. He'll warm up to you eventually. You are really nice guy"</p><p>'Gracias for the advice chica. Say I'm in the 4th floor, apartment 209, are you going to drop by later?'</p><p>"Of course I'll be there."</p><p>'Okay see you soon then. Now I have to deal with that angry Italian man' he said as he sighed.</p><p>"Good luck with that. Take care." you answered with a chuckle.</p><p>______________________________________</p><p> </p><p>I really hope you enjoy this. Please vote and point out if any mistakes are there.😘<br/>Thank you for your support ❤️</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>I really hope you enjoy this. Please vote and point out if any mistakes are there.😘<br/>Thank you for your support ❤️</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0009"><h2>9. Churros</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>"Are you done yet?" Arthur asked as he waited for you outside the door in the hallway.</p><p>"Yeah, yeah let me- phone, cash, purse, list- okay I'm ready" you said as you rushed out the door and locked it behind you. "There. All done, now we gotta wait for Alfie and Kiku"</p><p>"Well they're running late. Why don't we just go ahead and tell them to catch up to us at the market?" Arthur said as he huffed.</p><p>"Cause they invited us and it would be rude to leave them behind. Aren't you supposed to be all British and chivalrous and stuff?" You asked with a sly grin.</p><p>"Stereotypical. But for your information, I don't appreciate tardiness" </p><p>"Yeah yeah keep lying-"</p><p>You were cut short as the door of the opposite apartment opened up revealing the loud American and the timid Japanese man who looked quite mad.</p><p>"Woah dudette sorry for being late. It's was kinda Kiku's fault actually-" Alfred yelled out and was cut off by Kiku.</p><p>"You very well know that's not true. It was your fault. Y/N had to wait here for a long time because of you. Man up and accept it Alfred-san" It suprised you that the calm and silent Kiku spoke out in defense. You realized it would be good to step in before things get worse.</p><p>"Alright boys, no fighting, let's forget this. In fact we weren't waiting for a long time, we just got out, right, Arthur?"</p><p>"Well actually-" you elbowed his ribs before he could continue. He let out a 'ouch' squeaked a small 'yes' and clutched his chest area.</p><p>"See even Arthur agrees" you said as you flashed them a smile trying to make everything look normal."So, yeah lead the way then"</p><p>A comfortable silence followed as you as you all made your way to the elevator. Kiku pressed in a button. You all wait for it as it opened up revealing a familiar faces. It was Emma and Mei. Everyone scrambled into the elevator and you let out a small squeal as you saw the two girls. You got bewildered glances from the boys as you stood next to the duo.</p><p>"Oh my God Y/N so nice to see you here" Mei said as she gave you a side hug.</p><p>"We though we wouldn't get a chance to see you" Emma added as she took both of your hands is hers. "Are you doing okay? Where are you going with all these boys?" Emma asked glancing at them.</p><p>"Doesn't matter! Ditch them and join us for some girl time" Mei said with a giggle.</p><p>"Stop talking about us like we are not here. Silly girls. Y/N is going with us and that's final" Arthur added with a frustrated snarl.</p><p>"Is that jour stuck up partner?" Emma whispered in your ear with a giggle as she let go of your hands. It didn't go unheard by Arthur.</p><p>"Why you- How dare you-"</p><p>Alfred joined in laughing. "Oh my God dude even chicks are roasting you" Even Mei and you joined in giggling. Kiku was the only one who remained emotionless and silent. Maybe he didn't like all this noise.</p><p>The elevator was filled with a fits of giggles and laughter until it reached the ground floor. You all scrambled out of it. You decided in was time to cut in.</p><p>"Now, now let's not bully Arthur that much. He's been working really hard lately. So give him a break" you said as you glanced at Arthur whose angry expression faltered into a shocked one then to a frown. This guy was so hard to read.</p><p>"Okay, okay, so, Y/N, the offer still stands. We are going to do some shopping. Jou know maybe some spa time too. Please join us" Emma said waiting expectantly. A relaxing spa sounded amazing. You really wished you could ditch the guys but that would be really insensitive. Plus shopping for ingredients was your priority right now.</p><p>"It's really tempting but I promised them I'll join, plus I'm one who dragged Arthur in. I also got a list of stuff to buy. So maybe later? I'm so sorry." you replied sadly. Of course, Emma and Mei could enjoy as much as they want. They were amazing at cooking and teamwork that you were envious for and lacking. They didn't have to train like you did. Unlike them you had a lot on your plate. You couldn't rest until you had gotten Arthur to a level that he was reliable in the kitchen.</p><p>"Aww too bad Y/N. We were looking forward for some girl time, but it's okay. You can join us some other day and if you don't, we'll drag you along with us. That's a promise." Mei said as she put a hand on your shoulder with a focused look. </p><p>"Okay I promise I'll join you guys one day. If I keep the boys waiting they are gonna start whining. See ya later. Have fun!" you said as you gave them wave and made your way to your group. You could hear both Mei and Emma responding with goodbyes.</p><p>"Sorry for keeping you guys waiting. So where are we heading first?" you asked, passing them a polite smile.</p><p>"Good ol' farmers' market" Alfred said as he wrapped an arm around your shoulder. He came closer to your ear and continued with a smirk"By the way, I thought you were going to ditch us."You would be lying if you said your face didn't heat up a bit from the contact.</p><p>"Ditch my OG group? Pfft what did you take me for?" you replied nervously trying to wave the feeling off.</p><p>"Atta girl" he said as he removed the arm on your shoulders and ruffled your hair with his hand. He didn't forget to flash a pearly white smile.</p><p>"Can we leave already? It'll get late and the market is going to be closed." Arthur proclaimed.</p><p>"Hai. We should leave now without delay" Kiku added as he gazed at the street. He looked kind of bothered. He must be nervous to go out because he wasn't used to this.</p><p>"It's still 3 o' clock. We have three whole hours to shop. Just chill" Alfred waved off as he started to make his way out of the building.</p><p>You were out of the building and was making your way to the market on foot as it was close by. Alfred was leading the way as he knew the area very well, but he did take a little help from his 'trusty' Google maps. </p><p>Arthur was walking side by side with you while Kiku walked with Alfred. </p><p>"Why are we going to the farmers market and not a simple grocers? Is there anything special about it?" Arthur questioned as he glanced at you waiting for an answer.</p><p>"Well, unlike the the grocers, there are many varities of vegetables, fruits,herbs and spices there. You see the grocers only offer the generic vegetables. At the farmers market you can find things for exotic dishes. Plus it's some what cheaper" you proclaimed to which Kiku turned his head back and nodded in agreement and Authur muttered an 'Oh'.</p><p>"Hai, that is correct. I have to buy some ingredients that are similar to ones back at home to brush up on my skills"Kiku coutinued as he turned<br/>
"and I have to get Alfred-san used to them too" </p><p>"Haha yeah. I'm used to asian cuisine though. I eat Chinese take out and sushi all the time!" Alfred said as he laughed.</p><p>"You are not quite right. We are focusing on traditional Japanese cuisine and I doubt that the Japanese food offered here is comparable to the native ones." Kiku said with a critical look.</p><p>"Geez okay chef, you don't have to go all the way to educate me. I'll learn" Alfred sighed. </p><p>As the two were bickering infront of you, you and Arthur followed them in comfortable silence. Until Arthur questioned you out of the blue.</p><p>"Say Y/N, Chef Kiku's speciality seems to be Japanese cuisine. I'm just curious. What's yours?" He asked in a whisper sending you glance.</p><p>"Hmm, what's this? I thought we agreed not to ask anymore personal questions."you replied with a sly grin.</p><p>"This is not a personal question! This is solely related to cooking!" he exclaimed as he whisper shouted</p><p>You chuckled at his reaction "Okay I'll tell you. Well... it's...um... fusion cuisine. I know it pretty weird but I'm terrible at making choices so I thought 'why not all?'. So yeah I'm basically like a mad scientist." </p><p>Arthur remained silent for a bit before answering "I striked you for someone who specializes in a more delicate type of cuisine"</p><p>"Delicate? Pfft? Why's that? Do I look dainty to you? I mean kinda am at social situations but overall I assure you I'm a pretty tough chick" you said with a smirk.</p><p>"Nevermind" he replied as he rolled his eyes with a slight blush on his cheeks. </p><p>"Hey Y/N you want that ice cream now or later, cause we are gonna pass by the ice cream parlor now" Alfred asked as he turned back with a look of envy? confusion?however it was unreadable. </p><p>With that you put a hand on Kiku's shoulder and gestured him to switch places with you to which he responded without hesitation. Alfred paused for a bit to let you catch up with him.</p><p>"Wow dudette couldn't you switched faster?" He said sarcastically as he chuckled.</p><p>"Is this your way of saying you missed being next to me for a few minutes?" you asked with a smug look.</p><p>"Guilty" he said putting a hand up in defense. "You are just fun to be around"</p><p>"Haha we met like a day ago. Wait till you my true colors. I ensure that you'll be suprised when my edgy meme teen persona shows up." you said as you giggled. All jokes aside, you knew it was true. It wasn't being fake. It was just your way of testing the waters because exposing your real humor and personality to people you've just met. Now to strike up a conversation with Alfred so you don't make him uncomfortable.</p><p>"So you are from round here?" </p><p>"Yup I'm your average New Yorker ma'am." he said with a wink."Why all of the sudden?"</p><p>"Nah just wanted to know." you said looking down. "Apart from being silly, what do you do for living?" A question you wanted ask all along.</p><p>"What do you think? Take a guess" he said grinning.</p><p>"Hmmm with your personality, I'm guessing the entertainment industry?"</p><p>"Pssh not even close dudette" he said as his grin got wider.</p><p>"Really?" you faltered. Damn it, I was wrong along then. "What do you do then?" </p><p>"Well....I work for the NYPD." he said as he scratched the back of his head.</p><p>You were shocked was an understatement. This puppy dog of a man was a cop? Maybe he much more than what he looked on the surface. You were just getting to know him.<br/>
"Wait, you're a cop? For real? Man I had whole different image. How's that working out for you?" </p><p>"I'm still a rookie, but I don't suck at it so yeah I'm doing fine"</p><p>"Well thank you for keeping the city safe officer" you said with a smirk.</p><p>"No problem, I gotta live up to heroic personality anyways." he said giving a suggestive smirk.</p><p>"Oh we are are here." he gazed at the huge sign board about him. "Lemme grab that treat for you."</p><p>________________</p><p>"Aww man that ice cream was great!"you exclaimed as you threw away your finished cup."You must go there often. The staff seemed to know you very well, too well at that" you said as you giggled.</p><p>"Yeah, I do go there often. Imma sucker for good ice cream"he said scratching the back of his head.</p><p>You all started to get closer to a rather crowded area. The market must be close by. You saw some people leaving an area with their bag full which further confirmed you were right.</p><p>"Oh we are here. Behold the farmers market!" Alfred said as he dramatically put his hands up in the air. The stalls and it's vendors became visible as you got closer. It was a huge area. It was crowded but not to the extent that it was unbearable.</p><p>"Woah this place is huge!" you got a sudden rush of excitement. You turned to the group. "This is where we split, I mean if guys wanna follow me-"</p><p>"No Y/N-san you are correct. Let us go our separate ways to buys the ingredients. Alfred-san please come with me." Kiku said as he gestured Alfred to follow him.</p><p>"Oh- okay- let's meet here again after we are done, Kay, dudette?" As he walked away </p><p>"Yeah sure run along you two" you said with a wave as you saw them getting further away from you. You turned to Arthur and gave him a smile."Buckle up your seat belts rookie. I'm going to take you on a journey you'll never forget!"you said as you put a fist in the air.</p><p>"Stop being dramatic. Let's go" Arthur scoffed."Where are we heading first?"</p><p>"Oh yeah, first let's do a quick round up to see what this place has to offer. Then we can start shopping. I'm working on this budget today-"</p><p>"Budget? But don't we get enough allowance from the show to get fine ingredients-"</p><p>You sent Arthur a frown."There's nothing wrong with being thrifty. I'm not going to waste money no matter how much I get. Nah uh. My budgeting skills are perfect and I'm going to use it" </p><p>Arthur rolled his eyes "I suppose. Lead the way"</p><p>______________</p><p>After almost half and hour of walking around and Arthur complaining that his legs are sore you started actually buying stuff. You looked at your list as you scanned the stalls around you.</p><p>"First on list leafy greens........oh there. Come on" You said pointing at a stall. Unconsciously you dragged Arthur by the hand. Your mind was fogged with thoughts about bargaining with the vendor so the action went unnoticed by you while Arthur was internally screaming. What the hell was this girl doing?</p><p>"Wow look at all that!" You said looking at the leafy greens around you and started pointing at each. "Oh oh, see that Arthur, that's pennywort and that's romaine, that's water spinach, you know this one, Kale" you looked up as he was unresponsive."Arthur, um hello? You okay?"you said as you snapped your fingers at his face. </p><p>"Uh oh, I was just tried. What were you saying?"he said as he snapped out of his daze. </p><p>You gazed at him for a minute and continued. "Oh okay, anyways as I was saying"</p><p>____________</p><p>"Man that was a pretty good deal don't you think? These raspberries are amazing and the peaches too. I'm glad I got those plantains. I've only cooked them once with them but there are so many recipes!" you continued to blabbe on about all the herbs and legumes you collected while Arthur listened to you. This was the first time Arthur has seen anyone who was this enthusiastic about cooking. It made him wonder. Partaking in this TV show must be really important to you.</p><p>You and Arthur were currently waiting at the entrance of the market waiting for Alfred and Kiku. </p><p>"My feet is killing me. Let's sit on the bench there until they're here."Authur said as he pointed at a bench.</p><p>You didn't answer as you were distracted by a certain aroma hitting your nose. It smelled like cinnamon and melted sugar, almost a caramel like smell with a strong scent of chocolate. You looked around searching for source of the sweet aroma. Overall it smelled like a delicious sugary dough treat being fried. Your eyes scanned each and every corner of the many stalls until it landed on a certain churro stand. which was responsible for the ordor. There was a small crowd around it so you couldn't see what's going on. </p><p>"Yeah- you- go and sit there. I gotta check out something." You said as if you were in a daze. Your feet guided you as they worked on their way on their own to the source of the aroma. As you reached the stall as you pushed through the crowd to get a better view of the stall.</p><p>The sight you saw was one of the wonders. Infront you was churros, not your average churros, huge churro, almost the size of your upper arm. The strong scent of chocolate and cinnamon hit your nose. To your suprise you did see any chocolate dip served with it. Then you saw the vendor taking a huge churro and putting it in contraption with a slender metal tube which poked a perfect hole in the middle of the churro and filled the whole thing with chocolate the coated with cinnamon and sugar. The people around you looked in awe. Your mouth watered at the thought of tasting the sweet fried dough treat. </p><p>You wanted to buy one, know you needed it! Infact you should get one for everyone and thank them for cooperating today. Specially Arthur who walked through the pain with his numerous rants. You counted off the number of churros you should buy. Who else is there that you should thank? You had enough money left after your budget plan so it wasn't a problem. Oh yes, Toni, he seemed pretty stressed out today, he could use a churro. You should get one for his partner too cause it'll be rude to treat just one of them, plus it could be an attempt to be friends with the furious Italian.</p><p>"Excuse me, sir, can I get 6 churros please?"</p><p>___________________</p><p>"Where the bloody hell did you run off to?" Arthur asked with a irritated look as you made your way to the bench with a sly grin on your face.</p><p>"Oh boy, you are so gonna regret asking me that" you said as you came in with sparkling eyes and sat next to him keeping a fair distance so you don't make him uncomfortable. You took a paper bag out of the two bags your where carrying and reached in. Arthur watched you curiously. You took out the churro and handed it to him.</p><p>He looked at it with suprised. "This is for-"</p><p>"It's a thank you snack. Thank you for getting through today with me, partner" you said as you sent him a wink and a smile.</p><p>"I um- thank you, lov-, Y/N" he stuttered as a light blush made way to his face.</p><p>"Aw no problem. Alfred and Kiku is not here yet, aren't they?" you said as you took out your own churro and started munching on it. You gazed ahead to see any sign of Kiku or Alfred . Arthur hummed in response as he munch on his own churro and gazed at the crowd of people. </p><p>He heard a sudden giggle from you and eyed you a confused look. </p><p>"Haha you big baby, you got chocolate all over your face" you said as point at a corner of his mouth. "If Alfie sees it he's gonna make fun of you"</p><p>"What? Where?" he said as ran a finger over his mouth area trying find it but failed. </p><p>You giggled as you took out a tissue out of the bag and wiped his face with it. Wait what? Wiped his face! You eyes widened as you realized what you have done. Arthur look at you with a shocked expression. You both laid there in shock trying to process everything. You were internally cursing yourself until Arthur's hand reach yours and grabbed the tissue.</p><p>"I- um- I'll do it myself" he muttered averting his gaze as he blushed in embarrassment.</p><p>You wanted to address what just happened but you realized it would be better to keep quiet to make things less awkward. You too averted your gaze and looked into the crowd looking for any sign of Alfred and Kiku. Just like God answered your prayers, you saw a familiar blonde and a Japanese man making their way to the where you were.</p><p>You stood up in joy as you waited for them.</p><p>"Hey you two!" you said as you gave them a wave.</p><p>"Hello Y/N-san, did you get everything you needed? I got most of the things on my list."Kiku said as his eyes scanned the list in his hands.</p><p>"Yeah I got some amazing deals too" you responded gesturing to your full bags.</p><p>"Dudette what's in your hand? It smells amazing" Alfred said as he came to your side and brought his nose closer to the churro in your hand, taking in the sweet aroma. He looked at it hungrily.</p><p>"Oh this, it's a chocolate filled churro, too bad I only have one" you said teasingly as you waved it around his face. "You want one don't you?" you asked trying to tease him more.</p><p>Suddenly the hand you were holding the churro was grabbed my Alfred's. He brought it closer to his mouth and took a bite out of it. Your eyes widened at Alfred who moaned in satisfaction. </p><p>"Hey that was mine...... you meanie"you frowned</p><p>He gave you a grin with a look of trimph. "What? I can't control myself when it comes to churros. You should know this"</p><p>"We've literally known each other for a day but whatever. Anyways I actually got you and Kiku one too. But I'm gonna take a bite out of your churro so we are equal." you said with a huff.</p><p>"What...but that's not- okay thanks, I'll share." Alfred replied with slump shoulders.</p><p>Kiku was watching the whole ordeal with a blush on face. He was suprised to see how comfortable you were with people you met just a day ago. A quality he envied. Yet there was something about that girl which sparked his interest. He didn't know what but he wanted to find out more. </p><p>"If you two are done playing around, can we go now?" Arthur said as he glanced at you and Alfred.</p><p>____________</p><p>All four of you were walking back home and decided to stop by at the store for diaries and meat. You were walking next to Kiku the whole time. Alfred and Arthur followed you two as they brickered.</p><p>To your suprise you managed to strike up a pretty good conversation with Kiku. Well it was mostly about food but hey, that's a lot coming from the silent Japanese man.</p><p>"When making soba there is this method call 'mizumawashi', in English, the water turning method. It's the only way the noodle will get the correct consistency. It takes a lot of upper body strength in soba making." Kiku explained as you listened attentively. Yes you knew the about Japanese cusine, but getting to know about it from a local revealed so much more.</p><p>"Buckwheat huh? We were told to make soba once in culinary school. It is a gluten-free flour, right?" you asked with your hand under your chin.</p><p>"That is correct" he responded. "If you want to, I can show you how to make it sometime." he continued, shyly looking away.</p><p>You look at Kiku suprised."Really that would be great! Thanks you so much." you said as you passed him a polite smile. "But don't come crying when I start doing it better than you" you said teasingly.</p><p>"Hai." he replied as a ghost of a smile made way to his face.</p><p>It was quite ironic to you how you got along so well with people who you are compete with. It just these people were really nice, it's a shame that one group will be dropped every month. I could be you, it could be them. I saddened you to the cord. It was only day two and you started feeling so attached to these people even if you've only met a few. Your train of thought was interrupted by Alfred.</p><p>"Finally we are here! Now we can get some real food!" he said as he started sprinting to the supermarket like a little kid.</p><p>"How immature. What is with his love for junk food? He was listing everything he was going to buy all the way here for God's sake" Arthur said as he glanced at you with dread.</p><p>"That's Alfred for you. We should follow him before he buys everything."you said gazing at the store infront of you.</p><p>_____________</p><p>"What's next on the list?" you asked as you peaked on the list in Arthur's hand.</p><p>"Whole Almond milk" he replied</p><p>"Lemme grab that"</p><p>You walk away from him to the diary section in the store. Your eyes scanned for the milk but your view was blocked as some stranger stood infront of the fridge where the milk should be. </p><p>"Excuse me sir could you move to the side, please?" you said politely.</p><p>The stranger who was wearing aviators, a baseball cap, gloves and face mask moved to their neck turned around to face you.</p><p>"Oh hello nice to see you again" he said with a smirk.</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>Alright this book is gonna be reeeeeaaally long cause I exaggerate everything and I don't have sense of time. Plus I wanna add as much characters as I can.<br/>I really hope you enjoy this. Please vote and point out if any mistakes are there.😘<br/>Thank you for your support ❤️</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0010"><h2>10. Glass</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>"Oh hello nice to see you again" he said with a taunting smirk.</p><p>You looked at the stranger nervously. Your flight or fight instincts weren't doing well either as you were frozen in place. You shifted uncomfortably as you gazed at the tall figure towering above you. Come on Y/N think of something, do something. </p><p>"Umm I-I'm sorry do I know you?" you stuttered as you eyed the stranger lowly.</p><p>They gave you a chuckle that sounded way too familiar and lowered their aviators with their index finger.</p><p>"Mr B-belischmidt?! It's you-" you stuttered loudly as your eyes widened in shock. You were interupted as he put a hand on your mouth silencing you which only managed to work up your panic further.</p><p>"Not so loud! I'm gonna be in a lot of trouble if they hear! I'm a celebrity, you know?" he whisper shouted as he took his hand away from your mouth.</p><p>You regained you composure and bowed a bit. "I'm so sorry Mr. Belisch-"</p><p>"Gilbert." he interupted</p><p>"Huh?"</p><p>"Call me Gilbert. If you go on calling me zhat name it's going to attract a lot attention" he said averting his gaze.</p><p>"Oh well, I'm so sorry Mr. Gilbert. It's really nice to see you here. I doubt you remember my name, but I'm Y/N, you might remember the 'incident......'" you faltered shyly. You were trying not to fangirl, it's not like you were obsessed with him, you had respect for him because he was a very good host. He was charming, witty and confident so he brought in a lot of ratings for the show. With his hosting skills he managed to get the attention of not only the fans of the show but many more. He was the reason for the success of the show since Season 7. Those were few reasons you appreciated him for.</p><p>"Of course I do, you were the salty scones girl. I remember you"</p><p>You looked at him in shock and embarrassment. Times like these you wished that you could crawl into a hole and hide away for away. Just when you thought everyone will be forget it by today, this man just brought it up like a simple joke. Imagine one of your idols bringing up something embarrassing about you. We're you going to be labeled like this forever? You knew your eyes almost watered which didn't go unnoticed by him.</p><p>"Oh come on Frau. No need to be so embarrassed geez. Jou are getting teary eyed already. Be careful the next time" he said with a smug smile.</p><p>"I will sir." you said looking down. Suddenly he bent down a bit came in closer to your face only leaving some inches apart from the two of you. You looked up at him.</p><p>"You're much more different up close Frau. Francis was right, you are kinda cute" he said in a teasing tone. </p><p>"What, sir, I- you-" you tried your best to make up words at the sudden compliment. You were blushing like crazy.</p><p>"Ja, but don't take zhat to your head cause that doesn't mean we'll go easy on jou" he said with a frown as he pushed his aviators back to his eyes.</p><p>"Oh, never, I'm going to win this competition fair and square" you said trying to make up words.</p><p>"Such determination. You better live up to that little frau" he muttered "Alright I'm going to leave now. Don't tell anyone you met me here. I'll see you at the studio" he said as he grabbed a milk carton from the the opened fridge. He gave a small wave as he walked off, disappearing into another aisle.</p><p>You just stood there dumbfounded trying to process everything. You were snapped out of your daze as you heard a familiar voice which was now blocked out by you.</p><p>"Dudette you okay?"</p><p>"Oh yeah, yeah, I just couldn't find the milk" you said as you tried to wave him off with a stupid excuse.</p><p>_______________</p><p>You took out your phone out of your apron pocket and checked the time. It was almost 8.30. You were currently prepping ingredients for dinner with Arthur. This evening was a surely a quiet eventful one. Soon after you came back to your small apartment you went straight to Antonio's to pass up the churros you brought them. You'd be lying if you said he was more than excited to see you there. He was overjoyed when he heard that you brought him churros. </p><p>You were anxiously waiting to meet the grumpy Italian. It went surprisingly better than you thought. Well, he was quite the charmer actually. He introduced himself as Lovino. Not what you expected since Antonio called you this morning. His face was decorated with a flirty smile as soon as his eyes landed on you. Of course, you were flustered by the handsome Italian, but you managed to tell him that you brought him something and oh my, you should have seen the look on his face. It was a mix of shock and fluster as well. </p><p>'Ha checkmate, Lovino' you thought to yourself. You bid them goodbyes, not before Antonio tackled you in a hug which made Lovino drag him by the collar yelling 'Idiota! You are going to suffocate the ragazza! Get off!'</p><p>You giggled to yourself silently as your mind wandered about today's event. But still, you had mixed feelings about meeting Mr. Belischmidt at the grocers. Yes, you were excited to see him there but you were still embarrassed about him calling you the 'salty scones girl'. For God's sake this could go on TV, or maybe they'll cut it. You should have thought twice before signing that stupid contract. But now was not the time to think about that. This was just getting started. You still had time to regain your glory. You just had to do your part and just hope that Arthur does his. Your were snapped out of your thoughts as Arthur spoke up.</p><p>"Y/N, is this correct? I minced it finely as I could" Arthur asked as he pointed at the chopping board. </p><p>You peeked on the board observing it like TV show judge for dramatic effect of course."Well, that's pretty decent. Now try the onion and try not to hurt yourself this time. Let's see your speed. Then I have to teach you about identifying spices." you said as you handed him an onion. You swore that you saw a small blush building up on his face.</p><p>"Alright" he started chopping it with a determined look. He went on even though his eyes were watering.</p><p>"How about this?" he asked as he grabbed a tissue near him and dabbed his eyes.</p><p>You look at his work and passed him a grin. </p><p>"Well, you have improved from where you were yesterday, still a bit sloppy, but A+ for the effort. But this pace won't cut it when we are put into the restaurant simulation" you said as you put a finger on your chin.</p><p>"Restaurant simulation?" he asked with a look of confusion.</p><p>You gave him a shocked look. "Wait please don't tell me you don't know about 'the restaurant simulation'! Oh no we are screwed! " you coutinued to stare at him with your mouth gaped open as you paniced.</p><p>"Calm down you git! How am I supposed to know about whatever that is! I've never watched this generic TV show before! Just explain it to me without freaking out" he scoffed as he crossed his arms.</p><p>You gasped when you heard the word 'generic'. The nerve of him! How dare he say that! As much as you liked to argue about that, it was one of your least problems right now.</p><p>"Well it's pretty self-explanatory actually, it's where you work at a restaurant like area. We get 50 customer per each competitor. You have to do breakfast, lunch and dinner service for the the whole day with a set menu of your own recipes. If more than 25 customers point out your faults you are out of the show" you said as you glanced at him to see his reaction.</p><p>Now it was Arthur's turn to be shocked. You swore that you saw his soul leaving his body as he started at you with the terrified.</p><p>"WHAT THE BLOODY HELL! How do they expect a home cook to achieve in such a arduous task. That's it Y/N, that's a no for me. I'm going home!" He said as he started rubbing his temples.</p><p>"No wait! What! Don't do that! We are not even sure if they'd actually do it this season. You know with all the twist and turns there are right now. These were the challenges when the show was 'normal'. We really don't know what they have in store for us this year, so don't act fast" you said trying your best to convince him.</p><p>"Well sorry to disappoint you but we are not going to win!" Arthur yelled.</p><p>"Well not with that attitude! There's still a chance! It's still day two and you are trying to back out on this! How are you going to prove your brothers wrong? Stop being a coward!"</p><p>"A coward? I'm trying to be logical here! The other home chefs here have above the average skills and I don't even know how to hold a bloody knife! And you still expect us to win! Stop being delusional Y/N!" he yelled as he backed away to lean on the counter for support and managed to accidentally bumping against two glass cups which instantly fell on the floor and shattered. You cringed at the sharp noise.</p><p>"Oh for fucks sake! Not this too!" Arthur yelled as he looked at the mess and wiped his face exhaustedly. His pale skin was reddening with anger. The shattering of the glass only made the atmosphere more tense.</p><p>"Calm down! I'll clean it up! Stop yelling! Everyone will hear!" You yelled back.</p><p>"You stop it first!" </p><p>You are going to have to end this before your anger gets the best of you. That's it you are going to end this once and for all. Get selected to a cooking show they said, it'll be fun they said.</p><p>"Stop acting like a child! You owe me! I took an insult for you yesterday and didn't say a word about it being your fault! I could have exposed you to the judges! You are not going to let me down! I'm trying my damn best cooperate here" You yelled back. How did you two get to this point? You took a deep breath and tried to calm yourself and not turn this to a heated argument.</p><p>"Listen Arthur, I don't know about you but this is really important to me. I need to win this and I will take all my chances before I fail. Please, I'm really desperate. I promise I'll train you. We can win this if we try." you faltered as you directly looked in his eyes "Arthur, I need you....." </p><p>Arthur's face was heating up the passing minute. Wait, was he flustered?</p><p>You realized what you said. You need him? That didn't sound right! Recover! Recover!</p><p>"To win this of course! So what do you say?" you asked sending him a grin. </p><p>He waited for a moment before he answered. "I suppose.......fine I'll stay. But, like you said earlier, I don't want to be much trouble to you or get in your way." he sighed.</p><p>"No no I didn't mean it like that! It's fine. Everyone makes mistakes. Sorry I sound like a inspirational quote book now. But yeah- I believe in you ugh, I did it again, I'm just gonna-"</p><p>"Stop it, it's fine. Let's get back to practice" Arthur said now looking a bit calm "I'll clean up the glass shards, it's my fault anyways" he sighed.</p><p>You made a beeline towards the small storage room to grab a broom"Be careful. Let me help" </p><p>_______________</p><p>"Kiku, dude, you heard that?" Alfred asked as he looked around for the noise of glass shattering on the floor and muffled voices. Probably someone arguing.</p><p>Kiku listened to the noises and he guessed it was coming from next door."I hear it too, Alfred-san, I think it's coming from Y/N-san's apartment." </p><p>"Dude, I think they are fighting Should we go help? That sounds kinda intense! What if that British guy- That's it! I'm gonna go check up on them!" Alfred said as he took off his apron and rushed to the door from their kitchenette. </p><p>"Alfred-san wait, don't barge in, let's give them time to resolve their own problem. If Y/N needs help she'll ask us or she'll be embarrassed that you butted in. " Kiku proclaimed. </p><p>"Okay, you are kinda right, but I gonna go if it gets worse" Alfred pouted.</p><p>"Hai, then you have all the permission"</p><p>__________</p><p>" Hey Lukas, you hear that?" the blond Dane asked as he curiously looked up the ceiling to find the source of the noise. The noise was followed by yells and shattering of glass.</p><p>"Yes, must be the two above us." Lukas said not looking up from the the butter and sugar mixture he was combining.</p><p>"Well yes that's obvious. Aren't you worried? Someone could be in serious trouble you know" the Dane piped in.</p><p>"It's none of our bussiness, it's their problem if they can't get along."</p><p>"Maybe you right, but you are also wrong-" </p><p>"Can you the shut your mouth and get back to your work?" Lukas asked boredly. </p><p>"Yeah okay sorry- you are like too serious when it comes to butter cake"<br/>
Matthais said as he looked at the mini mountain of butter infront of him. In response Lukas just shrugged.</p><p>"I'm not judging you, but isn't this too much butter for one cake? That's not good for you know" The Dane added much to Lukas' displeasure.</p><p>Lukas returned a dead serious look.<br/>
"Who's the chef here, you or me?"</p><p>The Dane averted his gaze shifting uncomfortably."Yeah y-you are, sorry chef, I'll just get back to what I was d-doing"</p><p>______________________________________</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>This is filler before the chapter with the actual competition. Well round 2 I'm still working on it but it'll be out as soon as possible.<br/>This book is gonna be reeeeeaaally long cause I exaggerate everything and I don't have sense of time. Plus I wanna add as much characters as I can.<br/>I really hope you enjoy this. Please vote and point out if any mistakes are there.😘<br/>Thank you for your support ❤️</p>
        </blockquote><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>This is my first fic plus sorry for the grammar. Hope you enjoy this. Criticism is accepted so don't be afraid to point out mistakes. You can find me on insta and Wattpad @its_hetalia_wenches or on Quotev as @itshetaliawenches</p></blockquote></div></div>
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